A Different Dōjō
by AsamiT
Summary: Some changes can easily cascade into waves. A quiet morning at the Tendou Dojo seems ready to be interrupted as a post-card arrives, coming from an old friend...
1. Chapter 1

The early summer morning greeted Kaori like an old friend. Even as the ravages of time seemed to approach like thundering tides, Kaori always found resplendence in the rising sun as it peaked over the eastern horizons.

Rising from her lonely bed, she rubbed her eyes free of the cobwebs of sleep, and reached lazily for the small pill container on her bedside. Tipping a small blue pill into her hand, she slipped it underneath her tongue.

The itchy craving lingered in the back of her mind and she swore to herself—she hated having to quit smoking. Her lungs were always irritated at her for the years of nicotine suddenly being _taken away_. Wrapping her brown bathrobe that she'd owned for close to twenty years around herself and tying it off, she collected her bath supplies and made her way to the furo to freshen up.

After her morning ablutions were completed, Kaori walked along the path to the gate to the home she had lived in her whole life. Opening it, the smiling and greyed visage of the postman greeted her.

"Good morning!" she greeted with a smile crossing her face. The postman bowed in greeting and handed her the mail. It was very little, but the item that stuck out the most was the postcard. On it, _China_ was printed in English, with the picture of a panda eating bamboo in the cutest way printed on it. A distinct sense of dread settled into her stomach, and she returned to the interior of the house, setting the mail down on the family table. She prepared herself some tea, and sat down at the table.

After setting aside a utility bill and a letter from the Municipal Council informing her of a meeting to be held in the coming days, she finally faced the object of dread.

" _Tendou, bringing Ranma from China. -Genma_ "

It had been over ten years since Kaori had seen Genma Saotome, her best friend and companion through the harsh realities of being trained by the Grandmaster. They had split apart after Genma disappeared with his son to turn him into the best martial artist of all time. And now, he was coming here?

The urge to light a cigarette lingered, and she grumpily cursed herself for her daughters' thoroughness in cleaning the house of every tobacco product. Dr. Tofu's lecture on the responsibilities of the medication she was taking were a laundry list; the good doctor had known of her habitual use of alcohol, and had warned her off that too. These days she mostly drowned herself in black coffee and green tea, as it was all she could have.

Kasumi's flair for the finer elements of cuisine had been a savior, as had Nabiki's keen eye for the best quality coffee this side of Fujisan. At least her therapy and self-realizations had given her the conscious power to go back to training Akane. Speaking of…

Kaori ascended the staircase to where her daughters slept. Walking past Kasumi's and Nabiki's doors, she tapped her knuckles against the last door. After a few moments, a bleary-eyed Akane appeared in the doorway.

"Good morning, dear." Kaori says with a smile, "Take your pill and freshen up. Meet me in the dojo afterwards, okay?"

Akane rubbed her eyes and nodded. "Okay, Mama…" She turned on her heel and went back into her bedroom, closing the door. Kaori returned downstairs to her own bedroom to change into her practice uniform—another byproduct of her old life.

It was a brown gi that she had to admit fit her less and less with each passing week as kilograms seemed to be shed or moved about. Tying it tightly, she stepped back into the family room to hear her eldest daughter hard at work on her craft, as usual. Kaori poked her head through the kitchen curtain.

"Good morning, dear!"

"Good morning, Mother." Kasumi spoke back, greeting her with a bow. "Did you sleep well?"

"As well as you can at my age, my child." Kaori laughed. Her expression darkened. "A little later, we're going to have a family meeting about something. I'll let you know when we're going to do it. I'm going to go practice with Akane; if you need me, come get me, okay?"

"Yes, Mother," Kasumi replied, and Kaori headed towards the Dojo. She passed her middle daughter as she reached the bottom landing.

Kaori said with a hinting smile, "Coffee's percolating for you." She patted her middle child on the shoulder, and proceeded to the Dojo, where Akane was already waiting, performing her kata. Kaori observed critically for a moment, before nodding. "You're improving well, Akane. I only wish I had restarted our training sessions much earlier."

"It's okay, Mama. I know things have been hard for you since…" Akane trailed off, and Kaori nodded stiffly. "But she would have wanted us to be happy, you and I."

The two martial artists spent the better part of a couple hours practicing, the periodic sounds of two women's shouts and fists making contact echoing in the morning air.

…

Genma Saotome was in another one of his sullen moods.

These moods had only become more common in the weeks since they'd left the Joketsuzoku civilization behind in a hurry, with that tribe's finest warrior in hot pursuit to deliver their own version of frontier justice.

Normally, he'd take great pride in Ranma being forced to learn new methods of training–live fire exercises and real danger being some of the best–but _other matters_ had distracted him considerably.

His son, currently soaked and several centimeters shorter than usual, was walking beside him in the rainy streets of Tokyo. The affliction the two shared was an unfortunate one, that had mended some of the damaged threads of their father-son relationship. Those threads had been endangered the previous night by Genma revealing the truth behind their journey to Tokyo.

The Tendo-Saotome agreement, made over a night of liquor binge following the death of The Master, had been an unwelcome revelation for Ranma. They had a long and often violent argument about the expectations of the agreement the previous night, and the hostility lingered between them as they trudged down the waterlogged streets.

Genma, filled with frustration at having lost control of nearly everything, batted away loose strands of the long black hair that were blocking his vision.

As bad as his _current curse was_ , at least it was a far sight better than the first one he'd gotten.

Shannannīchuan, or _The Spring of Drowned Pious Man_. One of the many curses that had a worse effect than just physical—it had altered Genma's mind.

He shuddered at the thoughts he'd briefly entertained in his cursed form, abandoning his art and very reason for existence in favor of an ascetic life as a monk. He was not a warmongering man, but he did not see the point in renunciation of violence in a world where violence reigned.

In an hour of desperation, in a time of urgency, he had chosen the lesser of all evils, and wondered if it wasn't the Kami punishing him for some transgressions in his younger years. At that same end, he had to make peace with his son, for the sake of keeping things together.

"Ranma." Genma said quietly, stopping underneath a small awning. The red-haired martial artist glanced back at his father questioningly, and Genma sighed.

"I know that the idea of an arranged marriage is unwelcome news for you, but I want you to understand that there is more to this arrangement than just a pre-destined wife. This is to unify two branches of our Art that have been in disunion since before you were born. Nearly twenty years we've waited for this day. Besides, I'm sure you'll like the Tendōs."

"Have you ever met any of 'em other than your friend?" Ranma asked, crossing his arms.

"Well, I haven't had much contact with them since we left for China, but I expect things haven't changed a whole awful lot since…"

…

Kaori nervously smoothed her kimono out as best as she could, avoiding the cold glares from her three children.

"You made an agreement to marry one of us off to a boy we don't even know!?" Nabiki exclaimed, and Kaori nodded.

"It was… not best idea, but at the time, your mother and I felt it… was a very good way to reunite the Art in a manner that satisfied both of our egos. I'm not asking you to adhere to the concept and elope right away with the boy—I'm asking you at the minimum give him a chance. He's Genma's son, so he's bound to have enough skeletons rattling in his closet to let a therapist retire to a tropical island."

Kaori bit her lip in frustration and said, "He's also not aware… of how things have changed."

"What do you mean, Ma?" Nabiki asked, her eyes narrowing.

"Well, Genma and I haven't spoken in about 12-13 years."

Realization dawned on Nabiki, and she let out a weak " _oh_ ".

"The last time we exchanged letters was when your mother was initially diagnosed, but… he isn't aware of anything that's come afterwards. Particularly the changes I and Akane have undergone."

"Well, if he has a problem with that, he can go fuck himself." Akane said, and Kaori fixed her with a glare.

"Language, young lady. I agree with your sentiments, but you're still a child and I expect you to keep a proper tongue around me."

"Yes, Mama," Akane said as she blushed and bowed her head.

Kaori opened her mouth to say something when the sound of a bell chime rang out across the home. Kaori rose to her feet and looked at Kasumi.

"Do I look okay?"

Kasumi gave her a smile and a nod of approval, and Kaori moved for the door. Opening the door, her words died on her lips. A woman who was clearly Genma Saotome's _twin_ stood in the doorway, next to another woman—a girl, who had to be about the same age as Akane or Nabiki.

The older woman of the two blinked and said, "… _Soūn? Is that you?_ "

Kaori's eyes widened.

"Genma?!"

"Perhaps we should talk about the situation we're facing? Do you mind if we come in?"

"Of course, old friend. Come on, right this way."

Genma and Ranma stepped into the doorway of the Tendō family home, and deposited their shoes in the genkan. As the two newcomers followed the woman who was once Soun Tendo into the family room, Genma's friend clapped her hands together and said, "Uh, girls. This is my friend Genma Saotome, and his son, Ranma Saotome."

"Uh, hate to be the one to point out the obvious," Nabiki said, "but I'm pretty sure both of them have bigger breasts than we do."

"Yes, there are some things that we need to figure out, so let's sit, share some tea and talk." Kaori nodded to the table, with Ranma and Genma sitting down.

"Okay," Kaori said with a deep breath. "Before I go into an explanation of _our_ situation, why don't the two of you explain… your present state?"

Genma nodded, and pushed his ill-sized glasses up his petite nose. "It all started during our travels to China. We searched far and wide for new techniques to expand our understanding of martial arts. It was during this that I discovered rumor of an ancient training ground embedded in myth and history–known as Jusenkyō.

"The Training Ground of Cursed Springs," Kaori finished, bringing her fingers to massage the bridge of her nose.

"You're aware of it?" Genma asked, surprised.

Kaori fixed Genma with a look. "Yes, Genma. You do remember that I've got a Master's Degree in History, right? I did a lot of focus work on East Asian mythology. Jusenkyō isn't exactly unknown to those who study the more bizarre and insane parts of mythological legend."

"Yes, well," Genma said with a nod. "We arrived there, and began to train on these bamboo poles. While we trained, I made an unfortunate calculation in my defenses, and the boy here got a good hit in on me, and I went plunging into a nearby spring. The first curse I received was… not one I really wish to discuss."

Ranma snorted. "He turned into a pious man. Renounced violence and all that jazz. I ended up gettin' off the bamboo pole and the Guide helped me fish this dope out of the water. He of course was freaking out as soon as he got hot water dumped all over him."

"Indeed. I asked the Guide if there was a way to replace my curse, or to cure it. Apparently there does exist a spring, _Nannichuan_ , that is meant to give out a male curse, but the spring has apparently gone extinct… He left me but one option."

"I see," Kaori said, sipping her tea. "What then?"

"Well, the old man decided that since he had to skirt the uncanny valley, so should I. Threw me into Nyannichuan to make sure it was the right spring."

Kaori glared at her friend, who had the good graces to look embarrassed. "It was a mistake, one of many I've made," Genma said.

"Throwing your son into a magical cursed spring is a very serious error, Genma," Kaori admonished him before shaking her head in disgust. "Anyway, what happened after that?" she asked, and Ranma picked up the story.

"After we left tha' Guide and Jusenkyo behind, we headed to this village in the steppe, ran by these Chinese Amazons. Well, the old man was kinda pissy, and even though I kept tellin' him to stop, he ended up stealin' some food that was meant for a local champion. In order to fulfill honor and some such nonsense, I had to duel the girl. I won, obviously, but I got a Kiss of Death placed on me–now she's gotta hunt me down."

Ranma glanced at Genma and said, "Oh, and… the old woman who ran the tribe, she put some kinda curse on Pops for, and I quote, bein' dishonorable. So now he can't change back."

Tea was ejected all over the table as Kaori did her best impression of a fountain.

"What?" she asked in shock, and Genma nodded.

"I seem to be incapable of contact with hot water. Lukewarm water, cold water, all fine–just not hot. And unfortunately, hot water is what triggers the curse to release."

Silence settled over the group for a brief moment before Kaori spoke. "Now I suppose it's my turn to explain to you how things have changed here. Well, quite a long story in itself. I had been struggling with feelings of… my therapist would say _dysphoria_ since I was in my teens. Masako was an anchor that kept me from going crazy with these feelings, but after she passed away, I descended into binge drinking and smoking to compensate for the loss of companionship."

Kaori folded her arms and kept a passive expression on her face. "I've been seeing a therapist since Kasumi and Nabiki practically forced me to. The therapist and I soon realized that the root of my problems came from my childhood, and my dysphoria. I'm a transwoman, Genma. My name is Kaori."

Genma didn't say anything at first before slapping his hand on the table. "You're my best friend… uh, _Kaori_. I'll stand by you no matter what."

Kaori smiled and nodded. Genma seemed confused by something. "But you said in the last letters we exchanged that you had a son? Hikaru, I think that was his name?"

Akane cleared her throat, and Kaori nodded in her direction. Genma turned to look at the blue-haired youngest Tendou daughter. Genma bowed his head.

"I apologize, um…?"

"Akane," She said quietly, and Genma gave a nod in acknowledgement.

"Akane, it is a pleasure to meet you."

Kaori nodded. "And these two young ladies are Kasumi and Nabiki, my eldest and middle daughter. Now, we have a eight hundred kilogram elephant in the room in the form of the agreement we made as kids, Genma, and I feel–"

"I'd like to put the agreement into suspension, or at least, rewrite it," Genma said in a clipped voice, and Kaori looked surprised, before nodding.

"At this time," Kaori began, "I feel that instead of forcing them together, we let them decide."

"Agreed." Genma nodded.

The two Tendou daughters who would've been in contention for the hand of a sex-changeling young man breathed a long sigh of relief. Akane, deciding that there was nothing more relevant to her, rose to her feet and placed a hand on Ranma's shoulder.

"If you're a martial artist… then, do you wanna go spar?"

Ranma's sour expression shattered into a mischievous grin. A new sparring partner? "Hell yeah."

Ranma followed Akane into the Dojo, and the two squared off. The short redhead and taller blue-haired girl bowed in formal recognition of each other as competitors, and then to the small shrine made out to Akane's late mother. Facing each other, the two walked in circles, sizing each other up.

Akane launched first volley, charging to close the distance between the two. Ranma blocked a flurry of punches before returning a flurry of his own. An impasse at first, the two separated and began to circle each other again.

Ranma critically eyed her defenses, before going on the offensive and executing a takedown. In a matter of moments, Akane's feet were taken from her, and she plummeted to the floor with a _WACK_.

Staring up at the ceiling, Akane briefly saw stars before her senses returned. Ranma's face loomed over her and he said, "You're pretty good, Akane."

"Heh. You hit hard, Ranma," she said, rubbing the sore muscles that Ranma had taken out, with a hint of frustration.

"I'm sorry, I'm used ta fightin' my old man all the time," Ranma admitted, shrugging his shoulders. "You're still pretty good, but you've got some tells that are easily exploited. I can help ya with that."

Akane nodded with a smile. "I'd like that."

They proceeded into the family room and spied Kaori and Genma sitting in front of a shōgi table, both with genuinely happy smiles on their face. Ranma had to admit, he'd never seen his father with that expression before. Akane pushed into the kitchen, and reached into the fridge, tossing Ranma a bottle of water.

Ranma yanked it from the sky and took a drink of it. Kasumi was out of the room for the moment, and the two were alone. Ranma cautiously observed Akane. From first glance, she seemed androgynous. Not a masculine 16 year old martial artist or a delicate 16 year old girl, but something that occupied a space between all things.

His curiosity nibbled at him and he spoke. "Can I ask you about… um…"

"About what I am?" Akane asked, amused. "I guess so, you're more polite about it than most of the dopes at Furinkan High School are. What do you wanna know?"

"So you're… what was it called again?"

"I'm a transgender girl, Ranma. I was born with the body of a boy, but with the mind of a girl," Akane said, shrugging her shoulders. "I didn't choose to be a guy at birth, but I knew from a young age I wasn't quite the boy everyone said I was. I guess for most people, I pass well enough but, I dunno." She seemed hesitant and melancholy thinking about it.

"I think you pass quite well. I didn't know you were… um, born a guy until my old man mentioned it."

Akane laughed and scratched her neck nervously. "Well, it'll all be laid bare to you soon. I have to wear the boys' uniform still at Furinkan. That _gakuran_ looks awful on me. But I get my victories." She showed Ranma her nails, which were painted pink, white and sky blue.

"These colours are on the flag that represent transpeople. I wear this and a bra to school and nobody can really fight me on it. I also change in the nurse's office, but beyond that… well, it's complicated." Her face reddened briefly, before she took a deep breath.

"Now, Saotome. I wanna ask you something." She set her water on the counter and lifted herself up to sit on it. "What's it like to _have_ a woman's body? Like, boobs and stuff."

Ranma blinked in surprise and suddenly became keenly aware of his _biological_ womanhood that had been gained with minimal effort compared to Akane's more than likely tough journey to get where she was now. Ranma looked away from Akane and said, "I dunno, doesn't feel too much different than bein' a guy."

"What are periods like?"

"I dunno, I haven't had one." Ranma shrugged lamely, and Akane pouted.

"Dang, I wanted to hear the insight on being a girl from someone who _literally turned into a biological female_. Is there a way to get more of the spring that cursed you and your Dad?"

"I mean, probably?" Ranma said, thinking about it. "But I don't know how to get it–I'm not exactly on speaking terms with the Amazons as it is."

"Shit," Akane said, frustration being clear on her face. It lasted very briefly before it was replaced with a soft smile. "Oh well. Um, so, Mama and I talked about it, and are you okay with bunking with me?"

"With you? Sure, I ain't got any problems with it. I was, uh, wondering where we were gonna sleep. I was thinkin' the Dojo."

"Oh, no!" Akane said, laughing some. "No, you don't have to sleep out there where there's no heating or cooling or anything. Mama insisted we find a way to accommodate you two, even with the guest room being out of commission. Your father's going to share a room with her, and you with I."

Ranma was unsure how that arrangement would work, but he figured he'd at the very least be polite about it. A blur of activity later, he found himself standing in the outer furo.

"I figure you'd like a hot bath after… everything." Akane explained, and Ranma nodded. A hot bath sounded _really nice_ right now. He started taking his clothes off and paused when he noticed Akane had not left, and was disrobing herself.

"Uh, Akane? Why're you taking your clothes off?"

"Because we're bathing together, dummy."

"But-"

She sighed and rolled her eyes. "We don't have enough hot water to do separate baths for all of us, okay? Just, play along for a bit?"

Ranma nodded and finished disrobing, catching Akane periodically glancing at his bare chest. Eventually, annoyed at her sneaking looks, asked, "Do you have a question, Akane?"

Akane looked surprised at being caught for looking and said, "Are they heavy?"

"Yeah, a bit. If I run around a lot my back starts to hurt a bit, but it usually subsides when I switch back to bein' a guy," Ranma said, shrugging.

"I'm sorry if my questions are invasive," Akane said, bowing her head. "I hate it when people ask me all these questions, I should know better."

"It's _fine_ , Akane," Ranma laughed. "I'm not offended or anythin'. Now come on, let's get this awkwardness over with."

…

The quiet stillness of the night had creeped and planted its roots in everything. Ranma stared quietly at the ceiling, uncertainty nibbling at his head. To his immediate right, the slumbering _girl_ Akane was lightly snoring, curled up into herself. He wasn't sure what to do with himself now. Forming earthly bonds had never been much of an option before.

Insomnia gripping him tightly, Ranma silently rose from the bed he was sharing with Akane, and padded downstairs. He was surprised to see the form of his father's friend, sitting quietly on the edge of the building staring at the moon-lit koi pond. The woman turned to face him and a brief smile illuminated her face.

"Can't sleep either, Ranma?" she offered, and he nodded. She patted the space next to him and he joined her.

"I can't blame you," she said softly, "A lot has changed in just one day. Culture shock, enough sexual and gender identity questions to disorient and confuse pretty much anybody." she laughed and said, "I can't sleep much either."

"It's just how much my life has changed in such short notice, I mean– just a couple days ago the old man and I were roughin' it, ignorin' our curses like they weren't nothin'–but then we're here and now suddenly domesticity's rearin' its ugly head."

Kaori sat back and thought quietly about his words and said, "Perhaps you're right, Ranma. But I'm sure you can see the benefits of enjoying a life with a support network?"

"Sure, _I guess_. I s'pose this is just the first time I've been able to sit and think and not hafta worry about cops or animals findin' our camp and causin' trouble. It's… eerie."

Kaori nodded, and Ranma observed the woman quietly. "I wish I could give you and Akane the curse I've got. I don't want it."

Kaori laughed and said, "Well, I appreciate your kindness, Ranma. If you ever find a way to import Nyannichuan, let us know and we'll gladly pay the fees necessary, but until then–I am content to be who I am. But I told your father this, and I'll tell it to you. Don't consider this affliction to be a curse. You have a unique chance to gain new perspectives on things. Consider it a challenge."

"A challenge?"

"Switching between the sexes will challenge your patience, your maturity and even sometimes your rationality, more than likely. Learn to balance yourself in such a manner where you can _stay yourself_ and experiment as you please."

"But I'm a guy," Ranma protested, and Kaori placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I get that, I'm not saying you've gotta declare your womanhood and renounce masculinity, but at the very least try to find your most comfortable expression of self. Your father has some very strange notions on what it means to be a man, and _your mother_?" She seemed uneasy.

"You knew my mother?"

"Yes, I did." Kaori said hesitantly. "I really shouldn't tell you these things. Your father should. Your mother and I didn't get along very well because we held some different views on things. I protested very deeply some of the things your parents did, but by the time it mattered, I had a family of my own to worry about."

Ranma looked at the woman uncertainly, before she smiled, and a sleeve of cookies appeared from the inside of her dressing gown's sleeves.

"Cookie?"

"Thanks." Ranma said, accepting a couple of the treats from the woman.

"Ranma, if you ever need to talk about something, you may come to me. If I cannot help you, I have plenty of people I know through my own experiences who have an abundance of time and patience to listen to you. Knowing my friend, you probably have much to deal with in your head that you should seek a professional to help combat. You'd be surprised what they can do for you."

Ranma nodded and said, "Thanks, um… I'm not sure what to call you. Miss Tendou? Auntie?"

"Kaori is fine, Ranma." She said, a smile crossing her lips. _"But Mother would be better."_ she thought to herself.

"Kaori, then. Thank you."

The young man returned upstairs, and Kaori smiled to herself. Things were getting off to a great start.

…


	2. Chapter 2

After a busy and slightly hectic morning, Ranma and Akane found themselves walking the lonely roads of Nerima together. Akane was clearly uncomfortable in her gakuran, but little _feminine flairs_ had rendered it at least slightly tolerable. Ranma was wearing a spare gakuran of hers, tugging with annoyance at the sleeves, which seemed a little small for a boy of his height.

"I absolutely hate this." Ranma said with a frown. "Feels like I'm wearin' shackles."

Akane sighed. "You're telling me? So, Ranma–I need to explain something to you. Every morning, there's… these boys. They call themselves the _Furinkan Defense Force_. We fight every morning, because they think I'm some pervert who wants to creep on all the girls."

"Jeez, are they that conservative here?" Ranma asked, and Akane shook her head.

"Most of them are just confused about the fact they find me attractive. Most of the girls don't care about me being a transwoman, they're actually very supportive. I'll introduce you to my best friends later. Don't interfere in this fight, okay?"

"Gotcha. Anybody else I should keep my eye out for?"

"There's a guy–upperclassman Tatewaki Kuno? He's super into me and often joins the foray on these fights. But don't let him think you and I are like, dating or nothing, because he can be a little possessive at times. I'm the only girl in the whole school he goes after."

"Ah," Ranma said lamely. As they jogged down the street to arrive on time, Ranma was suddenly splashed with cold water. They skidded to a halt to look at the source–Miss Tanaka, one of the locals, was watering the sidewalk outside of her house like she did every day.

"Fuck it, let's just go," Ranma said, and they proceeded further. The gates of Furinkan loomed in the distance, and as if on cue, the double doors to the school swung open, and hordes of boys began to spill out, charging towards Akane.

Ranma quickly moved out of the way and perched on one of the gate's stone supports. He watched closely as Akane took no prisoners, rapidly purging the idiots who thought they could overwhelm her. Within a a couple minutes, the last man fell, and Akane stepped over them, looking frustrated.

Ranma eyed her carefully and leapt down from his perch.

"You're pretty damn good, Akane–you just dispatched a good couple dozen or so guys by yourself."

"Yeah, lots of practice in that regard."

"Tendou Akane," a male voice proclaimed, and the two teenagers looked at the boy in question. A tall boy in a blue Kendoist uniform stepped down from the door of the school and onto the stone path leading up to the door.

"The wildest fires of man kindled with a soul of a woman. These boors truly stood no chance against your might. My sweetest lady." He bowed, and Akane rolled her eyes.

"Senpai, I don't have time for this today. I've got to get to class." Akane said.

"Of course, but…"

In a brief instant, Akane swept Ranma up into her arms and jumped up onto a nearby tree branch. She then tossed Ranma through an open window that a blonde-haired girl was leaning out of. Akane turned to face Kuno, gave him a wink, and jumped through herself.

Kuno stared in awe and murmured to himself, "She has the grace of an angel, and the might of a samurai. Truly, the best of both worlds. But her friend… _interesting_."

Kuno, feeling a little light headed after such an experience, stumbled through the door of the school.

…

"Nabiki Tendou."

Nabiki looked up at Kuno's firm and fierce visage with a raised eyebrow.

"What do you want, Kuno-baby?" she said with barely a hint of enthusiasm.

"I seek information about the fire-haired girl in the boy's uniform who was with Akane this morning," he said, placing a crisp yen bill on her desk.

Nabiki looked at it, and quietly stared at Fukuzawa Yukichi's face as it had been printed on the brown-coloured bill. 10,000 yen was a great incentive to loosen the flow of information, but… considerations and strategies had to be drawn up. This was her baby sister, and a family guest. Her mother seemed to greatly value having her friend around, even at a terrible expense to the already strained family budget. But… for a little more, maybe a little _chaos_ wasn't out of order.

Her mind made up, and already plotting new possibilities, a glint formed in her eye, and she looked up at Tatewaki. With a predatory smile, she said, "Double it and I'll tell you."

"You drive a hard bargain. I would almost find it erotic if I didn't find you … lacking where it counts," he said as he slapped a second bill of the same denomination on the table.

"Right, her name is Ranma Saotome. She just got back from China."

"China? How _exotic!_ Tell me, is she… like Akane?" he asked, his eyebrows raising in question.

"I suppose you could describe her like that yes. She has… a curse, a very special curse that turns her into a boy with hot water. She's a girl with cold."

Kuno's eyes glazed over, and he seemed to check out to lunch. Nabiki felt a twinge of sorrow at the focus she'd be giving to Ranma on his first day, but then again–he was a strong martial artist, she concluded. He'd make do with what he had.

The aforementioned martial artist was in class, trying to keep conscious. His father had, in his own way, made clear to him that schooling was _sort of important_. The Art, like always, came first and foremost, but an educated heir made for a successful school, and capability to pass the ways of the Art on to future generations. The teacher was rambling on about history, things Ranma didn't really care about.

Distracted, Ranma started doodling on his notebook, and lost track of time until the bell for lunch rang. Ranma's reverie was broken, and he frowned.

School was _so boring!_

Gathering his things together, he looked over at Akane, who was doing similarly.

She grinned and said, "Okay, now you'll meet Sayuri and Yuka."

A couple minutes later, Ranma found himself sitting under a tree, with Akane, a girl with light-brown hair, and another with dark brown hair.

The lighter haired girl said, "How'd you find the only other girl like you, Akane?"

Akane raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Well, she's clearly a _she_ , but she's wearing a boy's uniform," the girl said, and Ranma blinked in confusion.

He looked down and said in awe, "Holy shit I've been in girl form this whole time?! I didn't even notice."

"Girl form?"

"Yeah, uh, I have this curse? I change sexes with cold and hot water. Back and forth. Some old lady splashed me with water before I got here this morning and I guess I forgot to change back."

Akane laughed. "You're getting used to it, Saotome. Anyway," she said, "this is Yuka"–she gestured to the light-haired girl–"and Sayuri"–likewise to the darker haired one.

Yuka and Sayuri both accepted polite exchanges from Ranma, and the four took some time talking, Ranma explaining his life up to that point. During the conversation, Ranma spotted Tatewaki approaching.

"Oh, hey, Akane–here comes upperclassman Kuno," he said, and Akane rolled her eyes.

"What is it, senpai?" Akane said, irritation entering into her voice.

Tatewaki bowed. "A thousand apologies, Akane. But I come not for you this time."

A dozen flowers were suddenly in front of Ranma's face.

"Uhhh?"

"Fair red-haired changeling from the mysterious China, accept my gift."

"Changeling?" Ranma asked, and Ranma suddenly found himself on the receiving end of some warm water. Sputtering and wiping his face, Ranma glared at Tatewaki. "What the hell is wrong with you!?"

"It's… true. You _do_ change!" He seemed excited by this news, and Ranma looked at Akane, who looked just as mortified as he _felt_.

"So what if I do? I ain't gonna start mackin' on you just because I change sexes. Quit bein' such a perv."

"You'll find no other man in Furinkan who will treat you as properly as I, fair Ranma Saotome," he said proudly, and Ranma leaned back in disgust.

"I ain't into dudes, asshole."

"Surely you must joke? A body such as yours _needs a man's touch_."

"I ain't into dudes! Not you, not Akane, not nobody!" he said, immediately feeling a sharp kick of dread in his stomach. He turned, horrified to look at Akane, whose face had gone from amusement at the banter to a sharp disappointment.

Kuno lowered his bokken at Ranma. "I challenge you, fair changeling, to battle. If you lose, you must date me. Have at you!" He charged at Ranma, with the martial artist narrowly avoiding getting whacked on the head by the wooden sword.

Ranma delivered a sharp kick to Kuno's jaw, sending the upperclassman flying backwards. His momentary break was brought to an end as the kendoist returned, attempting to strike in fluid motions. Ranma dodged a number of attacks before Kuno exploited a very brief opening in Ranma's defenses.

With a solitary _THWACK_ , Kuno's wooden sword made contact with Ranma's shin, and Ranma lost feeling in his leg. Being forced to favor the other leg, Ranma leapt up and landed on Kuno's back, riding him like a monkey, before pulling all his weight in to flip Kuno over, knocking the wind from the kendoist.

With Kuno now taking a nap, Ranma was sitting on his butt, nursing his shin. He tried to stand up, only to fall back down onto the ground.

He felt someone picking him up, and realized it was Akane. The girl said, emotion vacant from her voice, "Come on, I'll take you to the doctor."

The walk to the Doctor's office was quiet and full of tension. Ranma wasn't sure what to say, how to say it, and was quietly and very carefully considering his words.

…

"This is quite a mark," Dr. Tofuu said, observing the place where Kuno's bokken had made contact with Ranma's shin. "Nothing's broken, but it'll be a little tender for the rest of the day." He pulled some salve out of a cabinet and started rubbing it on the point of contact. "This is a minor pain reliever, and it'll stimulate the muscles and get them working again. Just take it easy on that leg for a couple days, Ranma."

He looked at Akane and back at Ranma. "So, how'd you come to meet Akane?"

"Our Dads were old friends, uh… Akane and I just seemed like natural friends, seein' how we're martial artists and all."

Dr. Tofuu smiled and said, "I'm going to get you an ice pack, I'll be right back." He disappeared from the room, and the silence returned, stronger than ever.

Ranma said, "Akane… I'm sorry. I didn't mean to say what I said but I said it anyway, and I feel like a big dumbass." The words had come very quickly and were stumbling over one another.

Akane breathed in deeply and said, "You really hurt me, when you said that Ranma. Do you… not see me as a girl?"

"No, I do! I do… I'm just… Kuno had me upset, and confused and _ugh he's such a creep…_ "

Akane laughed, "Yeah, you're right– he is. I forgive you, Ranma. Just please _think_ next time you're gonna open your mouth, okay? Once the Doctor gives you that icepack, we need to get back to school. We're probably going to be late for our next class."

"Brilliant," Ranma said with a sigh. "Off to a great start already, Saotome."

"Don't beat yourself up over it, Ranma," Akane said, placing her hand on his. "Our school is pretty chaotic, and you don't seem to have the best luck when it comes to avoiding that. I'm still your friend, okay?"

Ranma gave Akane a grin, and clapped her shoulder. "Alright, Akane. We'll get through this shit _together!_ "

…

The two stood quietly alone in the hallway, both holding water buckets in each of their hands with minimal effort. Akane joked to Ranma that it was probably the least punishing punishment ever.

Ranma suppressed a laugh and whispered, "Yeah, I guess it is. I'm a little annoyed by this though."

"I'm not worried, Ranma. I'll make sure you get the help you need with your classes."

"Hmm, right. I'd really appreciate the help, because school… bores me. I stare at the chalkboard and the teacher, and everything they say is like, white noise or somethin'." Ranma said with a shake of his head. "I kinda wonder if all the years I spent with my old man has made me stupid or somethin'."

"You're not stupid, Ranma. An idiot wouldn't be masterful strategist like yourself, and you're quite eloquent for a boy who grew up on the road. It's fine."

Silence settled over them, and lingered for quite some time. As Ranma turned to speak to Akane, the bell to signal the end of the school day rang, cutting off his words. Ranma's words and thoughts died there, and he left school for the day and headed home with Akane. The questions on his mind– _how did his curse affect him? How did it make him feel?_ –played on, inciting deep considerations as to what the future meant.

…

Genma Saotome and Kaori Tendou were best friends. From the throes of their youth, they had been inseparable companions during their training under the old Master of Anything Goes. As time had worn on, the two had drifted apart, with family and respective interests bringing them further apart. But now, they were together again, and it was as if nothing had ever driven them apart.

Kaori had to admit–having Genma around was like taking twenty years off her age. The cursed man was always exuberant and itching to _do something_. A few rounds of shogi had lead to some heated words, but afterwards, Genma and Kaori had taken to doing renovation work for themselves, the sound of hammers banging away in the spacious Tendou household.

Despite efforts being made to complete the renovations to the guest bedroom, bathroom and storage closet, there was an unspoken agreement amongst the two pairs who shared bedrooms that nobody would move into that Guest bedroom, and that they'd continue the current arrangement. Genma and Kaori had found they slept better with each other around, and Ranma and Akane had come to find much the same.

To sleep alone in a bed was fun sometimes, plenty of space for yourself; but having a companion to sleep with was _something else entirely_.

But despite all the sudden changes (for the better, Kaori reasoned), Genma's mood would often take a rather sudden turn to the melancholy, as he lamented his current state. More than his locked away manhood, Genma missed _hot baths_. He and Kaori had taken to an awkward level of sleep cuddling in order to preserve warmth between them, even in the hotter season.

Kaori considered whether or not this was the start of something greater, but decided that, at least during this time where Genma's emotional stability and self-identity was at a nadir, that she would allow him to navigate things on his own, and provide support where she could. If their friendship blossomed into something more– she would be ecstatic; if it was just a close kinship that could never be broken, she would be happy with that too.

More so than _Genma's_ journey, she would have to take her own. The therapist and her had been talking about sexual orientation now for some weeks, focusing on the _what_. Kaori had been debating to herself and her therapist for some time on her feelings towards men. Now, with Genma around, she had to favor the theory that she was a lesbian. Genma's cursed form was… _very attractive_ , even Kaori could admit that, even though her hormones were bouncing around everywhere doing everything and being plain stupid.

Kaori decided that in the grand scheme of things, this chessboard of life, she would have to play conservatively and strategically. For the good of the Saotomes she had come to bring into her family, and for her own flesh and blood.


	3. Chapter 3

Kaori knew not to ask too many questions about her middle child's more _questionable_ activities at school. Random sums of money would appear in the family ledger every so often, often as a result of something Nabiki had done. It kept the family in the black, even if it could be seen as a dishonorable manipulation of innocents.

Still, Kaori reasoned, 15,000 yen was 15,000 yen, particularly when said yen came from the less than reputable Kuno family. She knew that sooner or later, more money would need to start coming in. While her comfortable government salary of 300,000 yen per month was more than sufficient to sustain the household, adding two more mouths to feed on top of their draining hormone therapy and psychologist appointments did not help matters at all. The math was all quite clear on the table.

A 5 kilogram bag of rice could cost upwards of 5,000 yen. A family of six would go through that much quicker than a family of four. Add in different types of meat both pescatarian-friendly and not-so-friendly, coffee, and other foodstuffs and things were already seeming a little closer to the red. Add in prescription costs for hormones, therapist bills, the cost of renovation to some rooms which were in a state of disrepair, as well as upkeep on things like the heating and _utility bills_ , and that 300,000 yen was spread very thin indeed.

It was one of the only reasons Kaori had not intervened and forced her daughter to abandon her schemes. The occasional contribution to the household budget was a great benefit, even if Kasumi was a _master_ of stretching a yen to it's fullest capabilities. That being said, more income would be a great benefit to the household.

But, even with a little bit of a cash-flow problem, she and her family weren't starved for wealth. They had modern electronic conveniences, a proper electric stove, a large refrigerator, and material possessions that marked them as more _middle class_ than lower class.

Kaori herself had numerous economic investments in volatile and non-volatile markets, largely based on the advice of her late grandfather and one of her fellow municipal councilors. Being a member of the Liberal Democratic Party had _some_ perks. But those investments weren't for touching yet. They were meant to pay for college tuitions and retirement funds, among other things.

She couldn't ask _Ranma_ to take a job; he was still a child and was trying to get the hang of a very chaotic change in personal scenery, emotional troubles as a side-effect of his upbringing, and school. It would be unfair of her to ask him to find employment, but not her three daughters. _Genma_ , however. He was a fully capable adult, even if currently of the female persuasion, and could most likely find gainful employment _somewhere_ in the ward.

Kaori scribbled down the latest figures in her ledger, closed the book and rubbed her temples. One thing she didn't like was financial management. She sometimes considered letting Nabiki have run of the books and finances, but every time these thoughts came across her mind, she sharply reminded herself that her middle daughter was _a 17 year old girl_. She need not abrogate responsibility for her own household to a child because she didn't feel like being a responsible adult.

…

"Well you certainly seem to have a measure of experience in this field, and we have been looking for quite some time. Are you sure you're up to the task, Miss…?"

"Yumiko. Saotome Yumiko," the woman responded with an elegant and dazzling smile. Vice Principal Tsukuda Haruna was nothing if not impressed. The woman had excellent physical education credentials, and she could see just from first impressions that Yumiko was a cut-and-dry, no-nonsense disciplinarian, the very kind of person that Furinkan needed for a physical education program.

"Well, Saotome-san, I think you'll come to do great things here. Our last physical education coordinator quit under the most unfortunate of circumstances. We're looking to regain some ground our sports teams lost in the last year, and get some trophies back, as well as win some new ones."

"I can assure you, I will invest every effort to propel Furinkan High to new physical education heights," Yumiko proclaimed with another elegant smile.

"Very good. Though I must profess something; your surname is very familiar. Do you happen to be related to Ranma Saotome?"

A look of surprise crossed Yumiko's face. "How did you know?"

"Oh, just an intuition. Your daughter has shown tremendous skill in the way of martial arts. I had the great fortune to witness her and Tatewaki Kuno, the son of our esteemed principal, having a friendly duel out in the courtyard over lunch. The young man got a good lick in on your daughter, but she was quite masterful in taking him down."

Yumiko had a raised eyebrow, which soon vanished. She then said, a satisfied smile settling on her face. "Of course! I taught her everything she knows; she is my protege."

"Well!" Haruna proclaimed with a smile of her own. "I hope to see our student body benefiting from your prowess. If I may ask, is there a reason your daughter attends registered as a boy?"

"Oh, it is a tragic tale regarding her late father. I don't wish to go into it very much; it is still a very deep wound for me," Yumiko said, her voice heavy with sorrow.

"My apologies, then. Well, Saotome-san, can you start Monday morning?"

"Yes, ma'am. More than happy to."

"Excellent! I'll see you back here then," Haruna said, rising to bow, and then extend a handshake. Yumiko reciprocated and made her way back to the Tendou dōjō.

…

Ranma had been thinking, about a lot of things.

Since acquiring his curse at Jusenkyo, every day he spent flipping between the two seemed to weaken the distinction. He often forgot that he was in his female form until someone brought it up, or his back had started cramping. He idly wondered if he was losing his masculinity, but rejected that notion with extreme prejudice. He gave significant doubt that Akane allowed her _mostly male_ body inhibit her expression of self. Ranma felt, in a sort of paradoxically flipped way, he was trying to do the exact opposite and maintain some shred of masculinity despite the overly feminine form he was stuck in. The gakuran was, frankly, more comfortable when he was this way.

He mused on these things for a little while longer before he felt someone's elbow in his ribs. Glaring at the source, he looked at Akane tapping her pencil to her notebook impatiently, pointing at the board. Ranma had spaced out during a math lecture, and the teacher's scribblings filling the blackboard did little to relieve his anxieties about _math_.

The remainder of the class was spent trying to play catch-up, but after a few minutes of trying to keep pace, Ranma had grown frustrated, and simply pushed his notebook out of reach on his desk and decided he'd rather go back to contemplating his life. Akane was always studious and made sure to take great notes, so he'd simply ask her for them later.

When the bell rang for lunch, Ranma and Akane had ended up under their familiar tree with Sayuri and Yuka. After a few minutes of dealing with Sayuri bemoaning her then-boyfriend's incompetency, Akane had sharply disrupted Ranma's contemplation. "Ranma, are you okay?"

Ranma blinked and looked at Akane. He cleared his throat and said, "Yeah, I'm… fine, Akane. Just thinkin' about stuff."

"You've been thinking about stuff since this morning; you practically clocked out of the entire math lecture. What's wrong?"

"It's nothing, don't worry about it. Uh, can I borrow your notes?"

Akane gave him a glare with little heat behind it, and nodded. "I'll make you a copy when we get home–I'll use Nabiki's computer."

"Nabiki has a computer?" Yuka asked. "Must've been expensive."

"She lets me use it every so often to write up some assignments, but other than that, I have no idea what she does with it. I guess she thinks it'll be of use when she's in college?" Akane explained, shrugging her shoulders. She nodded to Ranma and said, "Either way, I'll write up the notes for you so you have a clean copy that's legible. My handwriting isn't great."

She grinned wryly, and Ranma gave her a tense smile. Internally, Akane frowned at the boy's hesitance. Something was clearly eating at him, and she wasn't sure how to approach the situation with sensitivity. They were still getting to know each other and the last thing she wanted to be was a busybody. She critically eyed the young boy, who was now having a quiet conversation with Yuka about something. Based on Yuka's gentle handling of Ranma's hair, she assumed it had to do with hair products.

…

"Saotome, you need to take better care of your hair. It'd look so nice if you treated with the proper respect," Yuka said, gently running her hand down Ranma's trademark hair-braid.

Ranma frowned and said, pulling his braid away from her, "What's wrong with my hair?"

"You've got split ends, and it's… lacking the kind of texture you'd expect from a girl with such beautiful hair as yours. And what's with this braid? Don't you ever get tired of the same old hairstyle every day?"

Ranma shrugged and said, "It's never bothered me before."

Yuka stared at him strangely and shook her head in wonder.

Akane spoke up, "Well, Yuka– We've got some kinds of hair care products back home I could loan, uh, Ranma."

Yuka eyed her critically. "Good, because if there's one thing I cannot stand, it's when a girl doesn't take care of her hair."

She pushed Sayuri playfully and said, "This one it took the better part of six months to get onto a good regimen. And how about you Akane, how long did it take me to finally convince you that growing out your hair would be fine if you took care of it?"

Akane blushed and fidgeted with the hem of her gakuran top.

"My point rests. Saotome, I'll convert you to the altar of proper hair care if it's the _last thing I do_!"

Ranma glared at Yuka with as much intensity as he could muster, and she wilted only slightly. He sighed theatrically and rolled his eyes and said, "I'll give your stuff a shot, but I can't promise I'll enjoy very much of it."

Yuka waved her hand dismissively, "You'll thank me, I promise. Now, I swear, Ranma Saotome, if I see you come here tomorrow with **THAT** ugly braid tomorrow, I'm going to kick your ass into the next ward."

Ranma blinked a little at the heat behind the threat, and Akane gently placed a hand on Ranma's.

"Don't worry," she said with pursed lips, "I'll make sure our little Ranma-chan does something different for once. However, Yuka, I would ask you please not push Ranma into something they're uncomfortable with."

She looked at Ranma and gave him a wink.

…

After classes had concluded for the day, Akane and Ranma had made their way back home. They had gotten into a debate over how difficult the game _Contra_ (a popular arcade title) would be. Stopping off at a local arcade, Akane and Ranma had spent their mid-afternoon together pumping most of their pocket money into the arcade cabinet. After some time, Ranma in frustration, stepped back from the machine, and raised his hands in surrender.

"Okay, you win, Akane. That game's really difficult," he said, folding his arms underneath his chest. "And honestly, I'd rather not dump any more money into it. I already feel like enough of a burden on yer family without wastin' all the money your mom was gracious enough to give me on an arcade game."

Akane looked startled for a moment before she gently patted Ranma's arm. "You're not a burden, Ranma. I would be hard-pressed to say that my mother considers you to be anything close to such a thing. Nabiki might, but who cares what Nabiki thinks? She's only a year older than me, she's not our mother."

"Okay," Ranma admitted, seemingly a little more placated. Ranma jabbed a thumb towards the arcade cabinet and said, "I still ain't playin' that no more, big ol' waste of money. Besides, we should be gettin' home, shouldn't we?"

"Oh, yeah, I guess so. I still gotta type up those notes for you, and you've gotta follow Yuka's extensive haircare checklist. I've still got my laminated copy in our room."

" _Laminated_?" Ranma wheezed in disbelief. "How serious does this girl take her scalp hygiene?"

"As seriously as you take martial arts," Akane said, looking at him with a serious expression. Ranma was stunned at the revelation.

"Why!?" He asked.

"She fancies herself some day to be a hairdresser. I keep telling her to go higher than that, but that's what she wants to be, a world-class hairdresser. I'm not going to discourage her dreams."

Ranma didn't say much else after that.

…

Ranma having gone off to the furo to follow Yuka's extensive requirements for proper hair health, Akane had convinced her sister to give her a couple hours with her computer to do some work. Nabiki cleared away her own personal ledgers and documents, as well as her own data diskettes and stored them in the locked drawer in her desk.

Akane sat down and powered the machine on. After slipping in the MS-DOS diskette and booting the machine to the black and gray _A_ prompt, Akane swapped out her operating system disk for the word processor, _WordPerfect_.

The only noise that could be heard on the second floor of the Tendou household for some time was the sound of methodical and thunderous clacking coming from Nabiki's bedroom, eventually followed by the sounds of a printer springing to life and going to town, spitting out the information that had been typed up into a neat document. After double-checking for spelling errors and penciling in her math work where it was necessary, Akane seemed satisfied with the results, and powered down Nabiki's computer.

She returned to her bedroom to find Ranma running a brush through his cherry red hair, wincing at every pass as the knots were something unpleasant. Akane snorted and said, "Here, Ranma. These are all of yesterday's notes. You really need to start taking your own, I can't do this every day. Nabiki's already reluctant enough as it is to let me use her computer as it is."

Akane threw herself on her bed and watched Ranma combatting his hair with interest, before growing bored and going off to the furo by herself.

Ranma eventually loitered downstairs for a little while watching television. Genma and Kaori were playing a game of shogi, and the three Tendou sisters were busy with their own thing; Akane bathing, Kasumi cleaning and Nabiki _doing whatever_. Genma peered up from his seated position at the shogi table and said, "You've changed your hair, boy."

"Yeah, friend of Akane's and mine basically threatened me if I didn't do something else with my hair for once. Is it bad?"

Genma glanced up at his hair briefly and shrugged. "Looks fine to me. I don't have much room to criticize your appearance, if you can't tell," he said, as he moved a shogi piece and gave Kaori a wink. He said, "Everyone at Furinkan thinks you're a girl who attends as a boy? How did that happen?"

"Well, I guess it's 'cause I got splashed before class the first day and showed up in my girl form wearin' a gakuran. Nobody questioned me about it until I realized what was different. How'd you know, Pop?"

"I got a job as the physical education teacher at Furinkan. I start Monday."

"You're the new gym teacher? Jeez, they'll hire any schmuck off the street."

Ranma found himself sailing through the air into the koi pond. Surfacing and sputtering, Genma said, "Don't mouth off at me like that, boy! I may not be perfect but I'm not exactly an idiot, am I?"

"I dunno, Pop. You've done some pretty idiotic things in your life, haven't ya? Like the … feline thing? How could you do that to yer only child?" Ranma retorted, jabbing his father in the shoulder.

Kaori snapped her fingers to get both their attentions before speaking.

"If I may interrupt your little bickering session… first, Genma, don't throw your son into my koi pond anymore. I don't want you accidentally killing those fish. They were expensive. Secondly, whatever beef you two have with each other needs to not escalate into destroying things. If I have to force you both to see a therapist, I will."

She stood up and said, "We're going to the dōjō to talk about this… _feline thing_. Now."

Genma and Ranma both looked at each other before Kaori said sharply, " _Now_!"

…

"So… Pop finds this… martial arts training pamphlet, that describes this move called Neko-ken. I was like, ten at the time. It's supposed to invoke this feral state of mind that enhances your strength and gives you this… power to slash through things with minimal effort. So, in order to have me enter the state, Pop covers me in fish sausages and other fishy things, and drops me into a pit of starving cats. I k-kept begging him to stop and to let me go but he wouldn't. I… l-learned the move but now every time I think of a c-cat, I… lose myself." Ranma's tone of voice had gone from neutral to haunted.

Kaori could see the boy was on the verge of crying, tears welling up, but he managed to keep his cool, not saying anything. Kaori felt a mounting white-hot anger in her chest, and she glared at the source of that anger.

" _Genma Saotome, you fucking moron!_ " Kaori said at a near-shout, jumping up and lifting her friend off his feet by his shirt. "You subjected your son to _TORTURE_!? For a martial arts move!? What the fuck possessed you to do such a stupid thing?!"

Genma pushed off of Kaori and dropped to the ground. He wandered over to the door of the dōjō before speaking.

"…At the time, I thought it would be a benefit more so than an hindrance… and I didn't read the last page of the document. Either way…" he said, "I regret what I did, but there was nothing I could do after the deed was done."

"You could've gotten your son some therapy so he could work through his intense phobia? You've doomed him to turn into a feral beast any time he gets within range of a _house cat_."

Genma said nothing else and simply left the dōjō. Kaori watched the retreating figure and turned to face Ranma.

"I want you to go see a therapist. I know I said it was an _option_ , but now I'm worried about your mental health," she said, and Ranma reluctantly looked up at her, his face red with frustration and embarrassment. Kaori lowered herself to her knees and said, "There's no shame in accepting help, Ranma."

"I know, it's just embarrassing to think that I'm scared by little c-cats," Ranma said, frowning, gently picking at the fabric of his shirt.

Kaori nodded and said, "I'm not saying you have to forgive him, but I don't think your father means you any harm."

"I know," Ranma said with a sigh. "But I… I j-just have a hard time because of all the s-stuff he's put me through."

"I understand," Kaori said with a frown. "I'm sorry I put you through this, it was insensitive of me."

Ranma waved her off and Kaori said, "Do you want me to get Akane?"

Ranma nodded quietly and Kaori quickly left to find her daughter, and found Akane emerging from the furo. As their eyes met, Akane noticed the concern and worry in her mother's eyes and said, "What's wrong, Mama?"

"I need you to comfort Ranma. There's been a small… uh, problem. Nothing too major, but enough to where he really needs someone he trusts by his side."

Worry filled Akane's face and she rushed off to the dōjō to comfort Ranma. Kaori watched her retreating form and turned to look for Genma. He was not in the garden, nor was he in the living room or kitchen. Deciding to approach their shared bedroom, she gently opened the door to hear muffled and choked sobs.

Surprised, Kaori entered the dark room and closed the door behind her. She gently climbed into the bed and pulled herself close to Genma's huddled form. She said, "What's wrong, Genma? Talk to me, please."

"I-I'm a terrible father, j-just like my old man…" Genma sniveled into his pillow, and Kaori gently rubbed her friend's back.

"We've all made mistakes, Genma. What makes us better people is learning from those mistakes. You and I both know that you've had a rough go of things, and that may have reflected into Ranma's upbringing. But you can still fix it."

"That and t-this body is making me feel so strange, I don't like it," Genma said, frustration creeping into his voice.

"I can't fix that, but I can get you and Ranma the therapy you two need. See somebody, talk to them, and heal your relationship. Just because bad things have happened doesn't mean they _always_ have to happen."

"I-I'm also worried about the pact. Nodoka…"

"Enough about her. You know as well as I do that none of the bullshit she tried to force on you two holds any weight. I'll drag my brother here if I have to, to put her in her place." Kaori said angrily, once again annoyed at having to think about _Saotome Nodoka_.

Genma rolled over onto his other side and stared at Kaori with tears in his eyes. Kaori frowned and gently stroked the side of his face.

Kaori faced a moment of indecision. She hated seeing her best friend in such pain. Someone who had been so close to her in youth was now on the brink of cracking under the weight of a number of things. She knew that his home life had never been the best, and that being left in the care of the Master had left him with irreversible mental scars, much like she had.

She hated the misery and pain wrought upon him, as he seemed almost incapable of managing it in a manner that didn't involve either treating his son with the same disrespect his father had treated him, or finding the bottom of a bottle of sake.

Her will hardened, and she steeled herself to take that first step _for him_. She couldn't bear it anymore.

 _I will do what I must to see him smile genuinely again…_ she thought to herself.

She chastised herself for being so selfish. Of course she was doing this for her too–not just him. She had wanted to be conservative and take it slow, but she couldn't help herself, it was time.

"You keep a lot of your emotions bottled up, Saotome," she said as she leaned down and gently kissed the cursed man on his lips.

"Kaori…" Genma whispered and Kaori smiled.

"I like you, Genma Saotome. Even after all the bad things and stupid things you've done, I still genuinely like you. Do you like me?" she asked, her voice heavy with emotion.

Genma pushed himself up and onto his knees. He folded his hands in his lap and said, "Of course I do, Kaori. I've liked you ever since I met you. Just… can we really do this together if you're in love with this?" He gestured to his female form, and Kaori gently took his hands in hers.

"We'll figure it out, Genma. We could learn from Ranma and Akane who aren't in a very different position. My daughter and your son are obviously enamored by each other, why can't we be too?"

"But I'm still… married to Nodoka. We never formally divorced, we… just separated."

Kaori waved her hands dismissively. "I don't care about that woman or what legal status you have with her or any of the silly things like that. Even if we decided to tie the knot right now, we can't marry anyway. I'm asking you right now if you want to give this a try, Genma."

"Of course I do," Genma said, scooting towards Kaori and planting a solid kiss on her lips. The two made out for a few minutes before coming up for air, both blushing quite thoroughly.

Genma cleared his throat, and spoke. "We'll have to talk about… the other stuff, but I'm okay with kissing and cuddling if that's okay with you."

"I understand, Genma. Maybe we can figure out what we're both comfortable with later… but I'm totally fine with just cuddling with you." She pulled the sheets back and patted the spot next to her where her late wife had slept for years. Genma and Kaori spent the remainder of the night in each other's arms–neither one slept, they were too busy enjoying each other's presence.


	4. Chapter 4

Akane was not the best at emotional management. There were days she wanted to stay in bed and cry about anything and everything… and yet, here she was being the emotional rock for someone who desperately needed it. Ranma was shaking and crying, his face pressed into Akane's nightshirt.

After a few minutes of wailing and sobbing, Ranma pulled away and wiped his nose.

He said quietly, "I'm sorry for unloadin' on you like that, Akane. You don't need me bein' all weak and stuff on ya."

Akane gently took Ranma's hands in her own and said, "You should never be ashamed of your emotions. You're obviously in a lot of pain, Ranma. If it means letting you cry on me, then I am more than happy to provide that for you. Also, baka, emotion isn't weakness! Weakness is being so loaded up with fragile ego that you think that crying is unhealthy."

Ranma nodded and smiled some. He said, "I didn't realize how much the stuff the old man did to me as a kid was affecting me until now."

Akane reached up and gently ran her hands through his silky black hair. "My doctor always tells me that we're often blind to our own psychological traumas. That we're sometimes experiencing such hurt on the inside that we almost don't notice it."

Ranma smiled some and said, "I think I'll do what your Ma says and go see someone. I need to learn to control the Neko-ken, or at the very least work past my phobia of c-cats."

Akane nodded and said, "I'm sure you'll find a therapist who suits you, Ranma. Now come on, let's get some sleep."

…

Ranma had risen before the sun once again, leaving the warm bed with a snoring Akane behind, and making his way downstairs. Not a single soul in the Tendou Dojo had awoken at this ungodly hour. This meant no hot water prepared for the furo, but he didn't really care about that. He didn't have much the luxury of hot water during his years in the wilderness.

As he was cleaning his female form, Ranma looked at the mirror on the wall and suppressed the compulsive need to look away in shame at something that was not his. He forced himself to look.

 _It is yours._

He slowly spread his legs and stared at the patch of cherry-red hair that hid his womanhood.

He once again fought back the feelings of shame and self-loathing that bubbled up from his stomach. A litany of accusations of being "girly" and "weak" came to his mind, before he violently crushed that line of thought with a determined " _No._ " escaping his lips.

If he was girly and weak, then what did that make his old man?

He idly wondered if the old man was having such a hard time with looking at himself the same way after being cursed. He briefly considered asking, but thought better of it.

Blinking hard, Ranma gently reached his hand down towards his crotch and gently parted away his pubic hair, gaining a full view of his labia.

A knot formed in his stomach at the sight, but also a feeling of relief too. Ranma had felt since he'd been thrown into Nyannichuan that looking at it would be a damaging confirmation of him being _something else_ –as Upperclassman Kuno had described, a sexless changeling.

But now, coming face to face with his own vulva, Ranma felt a cocktail of mixed emotions. Relief at how… _normal_ it looked, and anxiety about his absent manhood. The anxiety melted away when realization dawned on him. It didn't matter what he had down there, what mattered was how he felt.

He could be whatever he wanted to be, just like Akane.

Ranma felt a burst of determination, and stood up. Standing an inch from the mirror, Ranma said, gently looking himself over, "There's nothing I need to be ashamed about, is there? I'm worrying over nothing. I'm still me, even when I'm a woman."

…

The sound of female laughter awoke Kaori, who listened quietly to Genma's son laugh with genuine happiness, before the laughter died down. Kaori smiled to herself. She hoped that was a sign of progress for the young man. Speaking of progress…

She gently stroked Genma's long black hair. Part of her worried this was just a fever dream, and that it wasn't real. Genma Saotome, her best friend, had come back to her and now they were planning on taking the plunge into a relationship _together_. After a few minutes of cuddling close to him, Genma finally awoke and looked up at Kaori.

"Mornin'…" he said with a yawn.

Kaori gently kissed his lips and said, "Good morning. Are you feeling better?"

Genma nodded and said, "Loads, thanks."

"Good, I think Ranma is feeling better too. He was just laughing to himself in the furo a few minutes ago. I think he might've hit a breakthrough with his other form," Kaori said, sitting up. "You'd do well to try to mend things with him, Genma."

Genma nodded and said, "Can it wait? I'm too relaxed right now to do that."

Kaori smirked and said, "You're so cute like this, Saotome." She gently laid back and allowed Genma to cuddle up close. Kaori decided to do something daring. Her hand lazily skirted it's way up Genma's side, and she began to gently massage one of Genma's breasts in her hand, taking extra care to stroke his nipples. She felt them harden under her ministrations, and she smiled a bit.

Genma's face was flushed and a light rose-coloured tint had settled on his cheeks. She murmured quietly into his ear, "Do you like it when I do this?"

Genma nodded and said, "It feels… really good, actually."

While one hand was gently kneading and playing with Genma's breast, Kaori gently reached her other hand underneath the covers, and gently slipped it into the front of Genma's boxers. She gently stroked Genma's labia, causing his blush to deepen, and stiffen up a bit.

She stopped at the bewildered look on his face, and said, "Is this okay?"

Genma nodded silently and said, "Just… new things I've never felt before. This feels different than if you were… uh, you know, rubbing me off if I was in my normal form."

Kaori nodded in understanding and resumed her stroking, this time alternating a bit by gently rubbing his clitoris. This made Genma's eyes widen in surprise, but Kaori could tell Genma wanted to do something a little more than that. Just under a minute into doing it, Genma had begun to make small stilted noises and was squirming in his place on the bed.

After about 90 seconds, Genma very suddenly and rather loudly said, "Stop! Please!"

Kaori immediately halted and withdrew her hands, returning them to herself. Genma's face was beet-red, and he seemed ready to melt into the bed in a haze of arousal. He swallowed hard and said, "That was… unbelievable, but I don't think I'm quite ready to go all the way like that yet… but that was…" he trailed off, unable to complete the sentence.

"Of course, darling. Your comfort is paramount," she said, gently kissing Genma's cheek. "I just wanted you to know that I'm okay with whatever you're okay with. I want this to be an open and honest relationship."

"I appreciate that, thank you." Genma kissed Kaori's lips and pressed his forehead against hers.

…

Ranma emerged from the furo, a content smile on his face. As he turned a corner, he noticed Kaori and Genma emerging from their bedroom, holding hands. His father looked even happier than he felt, though his face was unusually pink, and his hair was a little disheveled.

Ranma asked, "Are you two…?"

Kaori and Genma both turned in surprise and Genma nodded.

"We're trying it out to see how it goes," he said, looking at Kaori.

"Good for you, you both deserve it," Ranma said with a smile.

"Ranma, can we talk about what happened last night?" Genma asked, uncertainty in his voice.

"I guess, what's up?" Ranma asked, his smile slipping into an uncomfortable reserved expression.

"There is a lot that I need to apologize for. I owe you a lot of information, and I promise in due time, once we've put down roots, I will explain to you everything, and help you understand a little more why our family seems so fucked up," Genma said with frustration in his voice.

"Okay Pops. I'm gonna go get ready for school, okay?" Ranma said, turning back towards the stairs.

"Of course, Ranma." Genma said with a nod.

…

Ranma stared quietly at the chalkboard and tried his best to follow along. His anxiety was rising up again as the numbers and symbols of mathematics flew by at a pace he couldn't follow. So much of it was jumbled and a mess that was beyond his reach, that he felt a sense of hopelessness about it.

Akane seemed to have no trouble, same with Sayuri and Yuka–everyone he knew seemed to understand the material and grasp it so firmly, while he flailed about like an idiotic child. Frustration overwhelmed him, and he clamped his eyes shut and set his head on his desk.

Waves of anxiety buffeted him like tremendous waves on the ocean, and nausea lingered on the back of his throat. Taking a deep breath, he tuned out to the teacher's ramblings, and decided to simply drift away until lunch time came. Akane's gentle rubbing of his arm brought him back, and he felt a sour feeling.

Why did she have to be so supportive?

Ranma tried to turn his attentions back to the board again, scribbling away at his notebook in hopes that something made sense.

After class had wrapped up, Ranma had stared at his notebook in frustration, the mess of scribbles were like undecipherable hieroglyphics.

"Are you okay, Ranma?" Akane asked, and Ranma shook his head.

"No, this still makes absolutely no sense to me. It's a bunch of numbers and symbols that have no meaning. I dunno what to do with this. Integrals? Derivatives? What even is all this junk?"

Akane frowned and said, "It's more important than you think, Ranma. You can't just ignore it. Are you really having that much trouble with math?"

"Yeah, I really am. It's frustrating because I'm usually so good with learning martial arts and getting new moves down, but this is… beyond hope for me. I get anxious and overwhelmed whenever I sit here in class."

"After school, we'll sit and figure out a way to get you to understand it, Ranma. I won't let you fail because of anxiety. Fuck that. Now come on, let's eat some food. I'm sure the girls are chomping at the bit to get a better look at your hair."

Ranma gently fingered the cute twin buns he had his hair wrapped up in and smiled some. "You think they'll like it?"

"Yeah, I'm really curious as to how you got the idea for that," Akane said, tilting her head slightly.

"It was actually a magazine I saw in China once, a model had this style. I really liked it," he said, blushing.

As they made their way outside, both Sayuri and Yuka lit up with surprise and amazement at Ranma's hairstyle.

"Ranma! You look so cute!" Sayuri proclaimed with a smile, and Yuka voiced her agreement.

"And uh, she followed every last step of the itinerary. We had some issues yesterday, but Ranma was dutiful as always. Isn't she great?" Akane said, smiling warmly at Ranma.

Ranma blushed harder and said, "Stop that, it wasn't that big of a deal."

"Your hair looks better when it's not in that terrible braid you had, Saotome. It looks much better this way. How does it look in your cursed form?" Yuka proclaimed, observing Ranma like a drill sergeant would observe a private.

"My cursed form?" Ranma asked.

"You know, your boy form?" Yuka said.

"Oh, it looks fine, I guess. I wasn't really paying attention to that, I was just sorta rolling with it to see how it turned out," Ranma said with a smile.

"Well, consider something androgynous next time, eh? You've just gotta find something that fits both _pretty and handsome_ in a lethal double combo," Yuka said, nodding.

Akane said, "She's right, Ranma. You've got such a beautiful face. Your cheeks, your nose and your eyes are just all so cute and beautiful, I'm so jealous." Her face was filled with a smile.

Ranma's face was bright red and he stammered out, "Uh… t-thanks Akane…"

"She's so flustered!" Yuka squealed with a grin. "Do you get much praise, Ranma?"

"Not much, no. That's why I'm so shocked. Everyone has been so nice to me lately, it's almost like… I'm dreaming."

"This isn't a dream, Ranma. You're in the real world, and of course people like you! You're a lovely person, in your boy form or girl form!" Akane proclaimed, giving Ranma a peck on the cheek.

Ranma's eyes widened in surprise and he lost the feeling in his legs, falling to his knees in surprise.

"Ranma, are you alright?" Akane asked.

"Never better!" Ranma replied with a grin.

Somewhere else, on the top of a tall hill overlooking Tokyo's hazy horizon, a tall figure in yellow stood stoic, watching the wind rustle through the trees and grass.

"Finally. Tokyo. I will finally get my revenge on you, Ranma Saotome. This I swear!" They said, clenching their fists. "Honor demands it!"

They took off in a sprint, but in the completely wrong direction.

…

Ranma looked at the door to the girl's locker room with trepidation. A knot of fear was building in his chest again, before a soft but firm hand clapped his shoulder very firmly. He turned around to see his father staring at him.

"Are you afraid, Ranma?" Genma asked, his eyes calm and observant.

"I mean, yeah, a bit, Pops."

"Don't call me that in public. I am Yumiko-sensei, or Mother."

Ranma looked at him in horror. "You want me to call you Mother!?" His voice was beginning to rise. "Do you know how weird that is for me to do, for the love of the Kami, Po-"

Ranma's sentence was cut off by Genma's hand being placed over his mouth.

"Yes," Genma said. "I know this is a little weird for you, but you've gotta stay with me, Ranma. I don't have a choice in this as long as that old mummy has me locked like this. It may be months before I get back to my original form. Okay?"

Ranma seemed to be slightly mollified and bowed his head.

"I apologize, uh, Yumiko-sensei… uh, I'm just a little freaked out, is all," he said, feeling a little flustered.

"Not a problem, I understand. I know this is going to sound strange coming from me, boy, but just relax. Everything will be fine."

Genma pushed forward and opened the door, and gently pushed Ranma inside. Standing in the doorway, Ranma looked around at the rows of lockers, and the girls idly changing into their PE uniforms.

Ranma walked across the room and took the locker next to Sayuri and Yuka. Sayuri said, "Are you alright, Ranma? You seem really worked up about something."

"She's just not used to this kind of thing. She was a very shy child, you know," _Yumiko_ said with a calm smile. Ranma had to admit that his father's acting skills were brilliant if he was able to throw on a completely unique personality that seemed devoid of all of his _normal_ quirks.

Sayuri gently patted Ranma's shoulder and said, "Don't feel ashamed. We're not gonna splash you with hot water or nothing to leer at you. We're not like the boys."

"Well, _some_ of us aren't like the boys," Yuka said. "There's plenty of us who are pervy to hell, but is that such a bad thing?"

"As long as you're not sexually harassing your fellow students, then no," Genma said smoothly, before nodding. "Alright, once you're done, we'll meet outside, ladies."

Ranma opened the locker and moved to take off his gakuran top. He became very self-conscious all of a sudden, as Sayuri and Yuka had stopped changing in surprise.

"Ranma, do you not wear a bra?" Sayuri asked, and Ranma frowned and shook his head, closing the top of his gakuran again.

"If I get turned into a guy, it'll just rip and stuff," he explained.

"Have you never heard of a spandex bra, Ranma?"

"No?" Ranma said, frowning. Sayuri frowned and opened up her bag and dug around. She threw a piece of fabric at Ranma.

"Wear that, unless you want the boys staring at your nipples all class," Sayuri ordered. Ranma looked at the offending piece of fabric, it was a gray sports bra, minimally invasive and feminine, and not much different than something Ranma would already wear.

Pulling it on, he adjusted it and tossed his gakuran top into the locker. He smiled and said, "Thank you, Sayuri. My old man kinda put me through some weird shit as a kid. Ma's okay, she just didn't know any better."

"No problem, Saotome. If you need anything else, let me know."

Ranma shrugged, and finished changing. He was self-conscious in the red shorts that were standard for the Furinkan girl's PE uniform, but got over it when he saw Akane. Though she still had to change in the nurse's office, she was very pretty in the girl's uniform. Ranma blushed and slid up next to Akane in the lineup.

Akane looked at him and smiled. "You look good, Ranma." Her eyes drifted down for a moment.

"Are… you wearing a bra?" she asked, and Ranma blushed.

"Yeah, I am… I, uh, realized that if I didn't, my nipples would be sticking out and I don't want them pervy boys over there gawkin' at me any more than they already are," he said, gently folding his arms over his chest.

Akane looked at the boys who were seated along the fence-line, and said, "Fair enough."

Genma emerged from the school building and approached the students. "Alright, here's how it's gonna break down today. Girls, I'm going to have you play softball–and boys, you're going to be getting an evaluation on your current physical fitness. Now let's get going."

Ranma had never played softball, though he had seen it being played before. Ranma had ended up on the same team as Akane, and Ranma found it to be interesting enough when there was action, but otherwise– it was a snooze-fest! He had been the first one to bat, and as soon as the ball had made contact with his bat, the force Ranma had put into it shattered the bat into a million wooden splinters. Despite the force, the ball's trajectory was knocked askew from that, and Ranma was forced to dive into second base, narrowly avoiding being tagged by a blonde girl.

Standing up, Ranma dusted himself off and waited for the right opportunity to go.

Though Ranma ended up getting a run, the team had been slammed with three outs and had been forced to switch. Ranma was sent out to be left field, as his speed and agility would prove useful for minimizing the other team's range of distance. Akane had joined him, as well as another girl in right-field. Ranma proved his worth when a fly ball had been knocked clean in his direction, and sailed smoothly into his glove with a graceful leap.

Akane had been staring at her friend's graceful catch of Yuka's fly-ball, and the heat he put into it as it sailed back into Himiko's glove. Himiko actually skidded back a few feet in the dirt from the sheer force Ranma put into it, and seemed to have been shaken up a little bit by the force Ranma had.

Akane had to admit–Ranma threw like a professional player, and she had no doubt that Ranma could play for the _Yakult Swallows_ if he wanted to, or any other team both in Japan or in the United States. She knew that wasn't quite what he had in mind, but was impressed nonetheless.

Not far away, another person was pensively observing Ranma's athleticism. "Yumiko", while thoroughly destroying the fragile masculine egos of the boys of Furinkan for their weakness and inability to perform what she saw to be basic athletic functions, had also been observing her son in the wild. Ranma's gracefulness and performance made Yumiko quite proud.

Not that she had no reason to be–the years invested into making Ranma a powerful martial artist were not all for nothing, even if the methodology and initial reasoning behind it were on less than acceptable pretenses. While she intended to make right what had been made wrong, she would never back down from her insistence that everything she made Ranma do made him a better person long-term.

Shaking away the feeling of her father's ghost lurking behind her, she went back to lecturing a boy named Daisuke for his poor form in doing push-ups.

…

The pile of love notes on the ground at Ranma's feet made his eyes bulge in surprise. Dozens of them from dozens of people. Ranma looked up at Akane who was chuckling to herself.

"This isn't funny, Akane!" he said, mortified.

Akane said, "Why not? You're popular, Ranma! You were so graceful today playing softball I'm not surprised most of the people at this school were practically drooling over you."

Ranma scooped up most of the notes and stuffed them into his bag, before slipping his shoes on and clapping his shoe locker closed. Walking towards the front door of the school, Akane followed behind with a smile.

Emerging into the courtyard, Ranma immediately noticed someone with a garish yellow outfit conversing with someone. The student pointed directly at her, and Ranma's sense of danger started letting off sirens and alarms.

Tossing his bag to Akane, Ranma braced himself and narrowly dodged an attack from the unknown assailant. The assailant's umbrella impacted the ground, forming a solid ring of light before the ground exploded upwards, ejecting dirt all over the place.

Ranma landed on his feet and said, "Hey, before you start blowing up the god damn school, do you mind telling me why you're attacking me?"

The assailant dropped to the ground and said, "You dare forget the dishonorable acts you committed? Ranma Saotome, prepare to die!"

The assailant jumped again, this time to directly attack Ranma from a close proximity. Ranma jumped and dodged again.

"I'm not going to fight you with civilians around, jackass. If you're some kinda honorable martial artist, why would ya endanger innocent people?" Ranma said, only slightly taunting the guy.

"Hmpf. Fine," the assailant said, before revealing themself.

"Do you remember me now?" they growled out, and Ranma raised an eyebrow, shaking his head.

"No, not really."

"You may hide your form in that silly gakuran, but I know who you really are, Ranma Saotome!" The person threw a sharp tool at Ranma, only for a female hand to snatch it out of the air as Ranma was preparing to do the same.

Saotome Yumiko glared at the young man, radiating a unique maternal air that _terrified_ Ranma.

"You accuse my daughter of dishonorable actions, you come here and attempt to murder her in broad daylight. How much honor do you think you have? You will _explain yourself_ or you will be escorted from the property," she said, her face clearly full of displeasure.

"Fine," The person spat, then turned back to Ranma and said, "Do you not remember our duel that you ran out on, Ranma Saotome?"

Ranma blinked in surprise. "Hibiki Ryouko!?"

Ryouko snarled at Ranma, baring her fangs. "You remember me now? I challenged you to a duel and you never showed up!"

Ranma's face reddened and he shouted back, "Our fight was at an empty lot behind your house! I waited there for three days!"

"And I came on the fourth day! You ran off and I was forced to follow you to the ends of the Earth; honor demands it!"

Ranma facepalmed and said, "I don't even remember what the reason for our fight was, Ryouko."

"Hmpf," the girl said, stabbing her umbrella into the dirt, penetrating a good three inches deep. "There is more to it than just that fight, Ranma Saotome. You caused me hell, and I shall never forgive you."

Akane spoke up, "How is it Ranma's fault that you followed her to the ends of the Earth for no reason? She didn't tell you to do that, and she waited outside of your house for three days."

"It is a matter of honor!" Ryouko declared, and Yumiko snorted. Ryouko glared at the woman and Yumiko started laughing.

"Why are you laughing so much, Ma?" Ranma asked.

Yumiko straightened herself and said, mirth creeping into her voice, "The way the child said it reminds me much of your father." Ranma blinked and dissolved into a fit of laughter with her.

"Enough with the laughter!" Ryouko ground out. "This ends here!" Ryouko picked up her umbrella and charged at Ranma.

"Ranma, remember– she has a weight imbalance! Use that to your benefit!" Yumiko shouted.

Ranma nodded and grasped the end of Ryouko's umbrella and leveraged her weight against it, forcing it down, and delivering a solid kick to the center of Ryouko's face, separating the girl from her umbrella and sending her flying into another ward.

"It may be some time before we see her again," Ranma said, squinting at the sky. "She… has a directional problem."

"Lovely." Akane said dryly.


	5. Chapter 5

The two families had gathered around the table that evening to discuss the events of the day, particularly the yellow bandana-clad girl who had shouted her intent to destroy Ranma Saotome to the high heavens. A silence lingered before Akane spoke.

"Could you explain why this girl has it out for you? What exactly did you do to her?" Akane asked, and Ranma sighed heavily.

"I guess I could condense this down into a very brief explanation. Ryouko and I went to school together when we were younger. Before Pops and I left for China, I went to this little athletic academy in Saitama, and it was an all-girls school-"

Nabiki cut Ranma off. "But I thought you were a guy until recently?" she asked in confusion.

"Yes. The Headmistress owed Pops a favor, so I got to attend, even if it meant showin' up to class in a skirt… Anyway, the academy was full of rambunctious girls, and it was a madhouse, particularly around lunch-time. Everyone was fightin' over the good stuff, like the flavored breads they used ta sell. I used ta always get the last piece of bread before Ryouko could, and I also whomped her ass every time we had team sports," Ranma said, shrugging.

He noticed the silent staring coming from everyone in the room.

"I took competition very seriously, even back then," he said quietly.

"She may have a grievance against you for _that_ , but that doesn't excuse attempted murder," Kaori said, annoyance clear in her voice. She glared at Genma. "And what were you up to during this whole mess?"

"Nothing of importance," Genma said, closing his eyes and rubbing the bridge of his nose. "I was in Tokyo dealing with some nonsense having to do with Nodoka."

"I see. Well, okay, so Ryouko challenges Ranma to a duel, and Ranma waits outside of Ryouko's house for three days, long after the duel was supposed to have taken place," Akane contributed, and Genma nodded.

"On the fourth morning, I came back from Tokyo and we ran off. There had been some issues and we couldn't stay any longer," Genma said, his lips drawing into a thin line.

"So she followed us everywhere?" Ranma asked, thinking. "Does this mean she was in China too? I hope she didn't get a Jusenkyo curse, I really don't need that on my conscience."

"If she does have one, it's entirely her fault," Kaori said, standing. "You did everything you could do short of submitting yourself to her, Ranma. You shouldn't feel badly for how things turned out. I just hope she sees sense before she ends up in serious trouble."

"Mom is right, Ranma. You didn't do anything wrong," Akane said, and Ranma shrugged.

"We'll see. Even if I didn't do anythin' wrong, it all kinda blows up in my face anyway. She'll be back to fight me, and I'll have to be ready," he said, sticking his hands in his pockets.

"You'll do fine, Ranma. From what I saw, she may have sheer strength on her side, but she's sloppy when she's angered," Genma said, shaking his head. "Don't underestimate her, of course, but subduing her won't be a death battle like you're anticipating."

"Yeah, but I gotta be ready. If for no other reason than I'd rather not let someone get hurt as a result of this feud she and I've got."

"We will start our sparring again in the morning," Genma proclaimed with a smile on his face. "It's best we keep training you to be better—that way a threat like this is nothing more than a speed bump."

…

Genma and Ranma faced off against each other, daring the other to make an attempt. After Genma had finished securing his hair into a ponytail, he took the first step. He prodded Ranma's defenses with attempts to punch or kick, the vast majority of which were easily deflected. One or two of his combinations had to be dodged completely. Genma then went on full-offensive, trying to pin Ranma as best as he could.

Ranma jumped out of Genma's way, and kept dodging him before delivering a sharp kick to the abdomen, shooting his father out of the Dojo, Genma rolling a few feet in the grass before coming to a stop.

Flipping up onto his feet, Genma charged into Ranma's follow-up, and managed to break through his defenses, breaking his son's attack completely. Ranma landed uneasily and turned to face his father again.

This inconclusive back and forth continued for several minutes before Ranma managed to get one good hit in on Genma that was too much for the older martial artist, and he surrendered.

"You did just fine, Ranma," Genma said, gently wiping the sweat from his forehead. "Just keep practicing dodging and finding the right opportunity to strike, and you'll be fine against this girl."

"Thanks, Pops," Ranma said, tossing a towel over his shoulder.

…

Ranma found himself cornered by Nabiki and Kasumi. Anger clear on his face, he said, "I'm not wearing a damn pink dress! I'd rather run around with my tits hanging out than do that!"

"You have to wear something, Ranma. Besides, all your clothes are in the wash. It's been quite a lot of strain on the household with you having to get your outfits washed every other day, you know," Nabiki said, her eyebrows shooting up. "It's become quite a burden."

Ranma's face reddened and his voice became cool and measured. "I ain't a burden. I know this because **YOUR** mom says so. I'm sorry that I didn't grow up in a home with parents who cared, Nabiki, so that I don't have an outfit for every goddamn day of the week. You'll hafta forgive me on that regard. But you don't get the right to tell me what I hafta wear. And I'm not wearin' that goddamn dress. You gonna try to make me?"

Ranma had gotten closer and closer to Nabiki, and was now only inches away from her. Despite his diminutive size, he was very intimidating, like an animal that had been cornered and was dangerously close to lashing out. Nabiki was beginning to sweat a little bit.

" _I may have gone too far this time,_ " Nabiki thought to herself.

The furo door opened, and Kaori stood in the doorway, wearing her brown bathrobe.

"What's going on here?" she asked, picking up on the tensions.

Kasumi said, "Ranma-chan's clothes are all in the wash, and we were trying to get him to put something on." She showed the pink dress to her mother, who had the good grace to facepalm.

"Even though the boy goes to school as a girl, he's still a boy. What made you think he'd be okay with wearing a _pink dress_ of all things?"

Kasumi bowed her head and said, "Yes. I realize it was a terrible idea to force Ranma-chan into this, but Nabiki convinced me we should do it, and he'd look _so cute in it_. Don't you agree, Mother?"

"Nabiki also said that I was a burden 'cause of how often my clothes gotta be washed," Ranma said, not breaking eye contact with the mercenary girl.

Kaori glared at her middle daughter and said, "She _did_ , did she?" Frowning, she gently turned Ranma to face her.

"Ranma, I told you already that you are not a burden. I am more than happy to have you here. There is nothing you're doing that would constitute taking advantage of my hospitality. And even then, you're only sixteen. I don't expect you to pay rent or anything silly like that," Kaori said, smiling at the young martial artist.

"Thanks…" Ranma muttered under his breath.

Kasumi had left and returned carrying some hot water. She gently poured it onto Ranma's head, turning the boy back to his male form.

Kaori patted him on the shoulder and said, "You should put something on, though. Give me a second and we'll figure something out."

Ranma followed Kaori to her bedroom, and waited outside for her to finish dressing. Opening the door, she beckoned for him to follow inside.

She said, "I don't really have any of the clothes I used to wear back before I started taking hormones, but I'm sure I have something in here that you'll like. You've seen me on any given day; I'm not exactly decked head to toe in pink." She opened her closet and gestured to Ranma. "Feel free to look through what I've got," she said with a nod.

Ranma begun to quietly explore Kaori's closet, eventually digging out a jumper with different vertical colour bands of different sizes that went across the top. He also found a relatively unassuming pair of high-waist shorts. He looked at himself in the mirror–despite being in his male form and wearing some clothes that were rather feminine in their design, he actually liked the way he looked. The jumper complimented his build, and the shorts made his legs look kinda nice.

"You look very nice, Ranma," Kaori said with a smile smiled. "Go ahead and keep it all, I've never worn it anyway."

"Huh. Thanks, Kaori," Ranma said, before nodding at himself in the mirror. "You're right–I do look good!"

…

"Hey Saotome," Sayuri said, "are you interested in going shopping on Saturday after class?"

Ranma blinked and said, "Um, sure, I guess. Why're you askin' me? What about Yuka or Akane?"

"Well, thing is, I want to help you sort out your wardrobe. From what Akane's told me, you've not got a whole lot in the way of clothes, so you know, I want to help you build a wardrobe that's functional, fashionable and looks good–that way you're not running around in people's hand-me-downs.

Ranma thought about it for a moment before nodding.

"Yeah, that's fine," he said as he tied his hair up into a ponytail. Closing the locker, he looked at Sayuri.

"I'll wanna go home and change out of this gakuran though after class. Can we meet up somewhere?"

"Yeah, the department store is this new one, Tōkyū; it's in Shinjuku, um, there's a little cafe across the street from it– we'll meet up there, get something to eat, and then enjoy the day, alright?"

Ranma nodded. "Will I be able to find it on a map?"

"Oh, yeah, it's within walking distance of the central station." Sayuri said, smiling. "You'll be able to find it without trying, I guarantee it."

…

Emerging from the locker room, he came face to face with Akane who had a faint smile on her face.

He said, "Did you have anything to do with that?"

"Actually, I didn't. But this is good! You have a friend that wants to hang out, Ranma. I care about you very deeply"—she gently placed her hand on his shoulder—"but sometimes we've gotta do things separately from each other."

"Point taken. Well this'll be interesting," Ranma said, shrugging his shoulders. "But I'm not gonna let her dictate anything to me as to what I'm buyin'. It'll be my decision and my decision alone."

"Ranma, nobody we know has tried to enforce their way of thinking on you. At least outside of Nabiki and Kasumi trying to stick you in that gaudy dress," Akane said. "My mother and I just want you to be happy as yourself, okay?"

"Yeah, you're right. I'm sorry, I'm just… Nabiki really pissed me off and so I'm feelin' a little uncertain about if people're tryin' to make me into something I ain't," Ranma said, and Akane gently rubbed his shoulder.

"Sayuri is really good about respecting people's boundaries. She's very understanding and sympathetic. Yuka's just a perv." Akane said with a laugh.

"What am I gonna do for money?" Ranma asked. "My old man ain't exactly been paid yet."

"We'll figure that out, Ranma. But it'll be okay–everything will work out fine," Akane said with a nod.

…

"A shopping trip?" Kaori echoed, and her youngest daughter nodded violently, grinning ear to ear.

" _Nobody seems more invested in Ranma coming into his own as a teenager and a person than Akane,_ " Kaori thought to herself. Akane was such a sweet soul sometimes, more invested in the well-being of others than herself. A commendable trait, Kaori reasoned, but one she hoped Akane would learn to be strategic with.

"Ranma got invited to go to shopping by a girl, your friend Sayuri, and he accepted?" Kaori asked again, and Akane nodded even harder. Kaori's face broke out into a grin and she drove a fist into her girlfriend's shoulder. "See, Genma! I told you the boy wasn't lost!"

She turned and gripped Akane's arms. "Thank you for telling me, Akane! This is wonderful!"

Akane nodded and said, "I'll be upstairs studying, Mama." She disappeared from the family room, and Kaori's bright smile never faltered as she looked back at Genma.

Genma was still rubbing his arm in pain and said, "Yes, well… not turning into my father for a second about gender roles and that stuff, I don't really have the money to fund a shopping trip for the boy."

Kaori waved her hand dismissively. "This will be on me."

"Kaori!" Genma said sharply. "You really shouldn't! This is my responsibility! I'm his father!"

"Of course I can, and I will. You and Ranma are both still in a tight spot, which is why I am offering to fund the replacement of Ranma's wardrobe. Of course I'm not going to let him buy the world, but I figure some money for clothes and other fancies isn't entirely out of the question. He and I will talk about it when he's done doing his kata."

Genma adjusted himself from his seated position and said, "This is embarrassing."

"Oh, come on, Genma. You never wanted a _sugar mama_ in your life? Is it because I'm a woman?"

"No, no, of course not. I just– my pride is a little wounded, is all," he said, rubbing the back of his neck.

Kaori placed her hand on Genma's thigh, and squeezed gently. "Would you like me to make it up to you? I'm sure I can find all the ways in the world to make you forget _all about this_."

Genma blushed and he swatted her hand away. "Stop that right this instant! Why are you always so horny?"

"Baby," Kaori said impatiently, "I'm going through a second round of puberty at 41, and I'm sitting next to the most attractive person in Japan. You'll pardon me if I'm not just a _little bit_ in heat right now." She emphasized the end of her sentence with a pouty puppy-dog look at Genma.

"Well, maybe later," he said, nudging Kaori's ribs.

…

Genma had gone off to take more measurements of the upstairs construction, and Kaori snatched Ranma as soon as he passed by the family room on the way to the furo.

"Sit down, Ranma," she instructed, and the boy complied. She sat back down across from him and said, "So, I hear you've got a little thing this Saturday!"

"Huh? Yeah, I've got a shopping trip with Sayuri on Saturday after classes are done. I'm a little nervous because I don't have any money, but Akane said it would work out–I dunno how," he said nervously, and Kaori simply gave him a smile.

"It works out like this," she said as she extended her hand, with a small piece of plastic in it. Ranma gently took the object in question and looked at it.

"A credit card?"

"My credit card, to be exact. Yes. I want you to go and enjoy your day. Don't go too overboard, I'm not Yoshiaki Tsutsumi or anything, but I'm well enough off where you don't have to worry about expense that much. Be reasonable in your purchases is my only condition–sometimes the most expensive thing is not always the _best_ thing."

"Yes ma'am." Ranma bowed his head.

"You're such a sweet boy. I think this trip will do wonders for you. Have fun, would you?" She smiled, and Ranma nodded.

…

Sayuri quietly sipped on her drink as she waited for Ranma to show up. Part of her was skeptical the boy would even show up at all–and that he'd flake on her. But she would be patient. She'd seen him conversing animatedly with Akane after classes had ended, and had given her a smile when she'd passed by on her way out of the building, but she was still uncertain.

Someone tapping on her shoulder startled her, and she wheeled around to see a grinning redhead staring back at her. The boy in question was wearing a multi-colored jumper, denim shorts, and what looked like a pair of Akane's sneakers.

"Hey Sayuri!" Ranma chimed, and Sayuri blinked in surprise.

"Ranma, you look… good! Wow! Did you pick this outfit out?"

"Yeah, I did actually. Akane's Mom helped me a bit, though," Ranma said, before looking around. "So that's what a department store looks like, huh? It's _so big!_ "

"You've never been to a department store before?" Sayuri asked, and Ranma shook his head in the negative. "Nope, never. Maybe as a baby but not as far as I can remember. Being on a training trip in China for so long, you kinda… lose track of the real world."

Sayuri nodded in understanding.

Ranma said, "Though, Sayuri… there's somethin' I gotta tell you before we start. I'm…"

"A boy?" Sayuri said, an amused smile on her face. Ranma stared at her in shock, and she began to laugh at his expression.

"Ranma, it wasn't very hard for me to figure it out– but it's okay, I won't tell anybody or cause a problem for you. I understand how it can be sometimes, trying to figure out what you are. Akane and I have been best friends since we were in primary school together. I was the one who helped her figure out she was transgender. I let her try on a yukata I'd just gotten for Tanabata, and I could see the realization dawning on her face," Sayuri said, smiling even brighter at the memory.

"So trust me, if you want to experiment, to figure out what makes you, well, you–I'm behind you all the way. That's one of the reasons I asked you to go shopping with me!" she said, and Ranma smiled broadly at her.

"Sayuri, have I ever told ya how great you are? You're very sweet, thank you."

"Of course, Saotome. Now just 'cause I know your little secret doesn't mean you'll get out of boning up your female wardrobe. Every self-respecting girl needs some good outfits, even girls that switch sexes with water like you."

…

Ranma wasn't sure how to feel. He hadn't expected shopping to be so _fun_. The department store was massive, and different departments catered to a specific purpose–clothing, jewelry, cosmetics, toys, electronics; the possibilities were almost endless. He'd spent the first bit of time watching Sayuri shop for herself. Eventually, something had caught his eye.

That item had cascaded into an array of things he'd started noticing, and soon he was digging through racks of clothing meant for both sexes with an unusual gusto.

Sayuri occasionally popped out of nowhere to offer advice and criticisms of what she thought was outdated fashion, but largely left Ranma to do his own thing. While waiting behind him at the checkout, Sayuri noticed a few skirts of different colours and patterns, some leggings, and other sharply feminine attire mixed into his numerous purchases of androgynous and masculine attire. After paying with the credit card he procured from his pants pocket, Ranma had thanked the cashier in a friendly manner, and had moved on, waiting for Sayuri to finish.

At the next shop, Ranma was nearly catatonic at the idea of spending money there. It had taken a great deal of convincing from Sayuri, as well as the bribe of an unhealthy amount of ice cream for Ranma to finally agree to go into a rather upscale lingerie shop.

The shop's purpose and the fact he was more well-endowed than most of the mannequins had left the boy little space for anything other than being incredibly embarrassed. After getting over his initial embarrassment, Ranma had figured out how to enjoy himself, and was soon picking things off the walls to show them to Sayuri for her opinion.

After getting measurements done, and buying some goods from that store, Ranma's blush gradually faded, and Sayuri took him to the food court for a healthy dose of ice cream.

"That wasn't so bad, was it?" Sayuri asked, and Ranma shrugged.

"No, not that bad. I mean it's kinda weird for me ta be shopping at a lingerie store, but I see what y'all meant about it may come in handy. Like, what if I gotta attend a social function in my female form? A sports bra ain't gonna work if I gotta wear a dress or somethin' really girly like that." He stabbed his parfait with his spoon as if to give emphasis to his words.

"Well that's probably one reason, but another might just be to feel pretty. You don't have to do anything for other people's amusement or comfort, Ranma. You're your own person. If you try one of those bras on and you don't like it–understandable. We can come back here and return them. That store has a very generous return policy for dissatisfied customers," Sayuri said, shrugging her shoulders and taking another spoonful of her chocolate ice cream.

"Yeah, you're right. What else are we thinkin' about doing today?" He asked, and she smiled.

"Well, not much else, actually. A stop to get some sports bras, and maybe whatever catches our eye," she said, giving Ranma another shrug.

"Sounds great!" Ranma said.

After finishing their ice cream, Ranma and his friend went to the sporting goods department, and acquired an assortment of sports bras for herself and for Ranma. As they were preparing to leave the store, Sayuri stopped cold, leaving Ranma to turn around to face her.

"What's up, Sayuri?"

"They're having a sale on make-up!" she squealed, looking at the sign across the hall. "Buy two, get one free. Just hang around for a bit; let me find something good! They almost never do this kind of sale!"

She dashed through the cosmetics department, leaving Ranma standing on the edge, raising an eyebrow. After a couple minutes with Sayuri nowhere in sight, a different woman, one of the shop's attendants, appeared from seemingly out of nowhere.

"Do you need any assistance, Miss?" she asked, and Ranma jumped slightly, having not expected someone to appear from nowhere.

"Oh! Um, sorry… uh… not really," Ranma said, lowering his head.

The woman said, "Are you sure? We have a wonderful sale today on makeup. A pretty girl like you, I'm sure there's something here you've been having your eye on lately."

"I don't wear cosmetics, actually," he said with a flat expression.

"Never?" The woman seemed shocked, before Ranma shook his head.

"Oh, alright then. Well, if you need any help, feel free to find a representative and ask. We're here to serve you," she said, gave a deep bow, and went back to whatever she was doing.

Ranma took a deep breath after the woman had left, and looked around at the racks of cosmetics. A number of different women, none of whom were Sayuri, were busy milling about looking at the different brands of different things.

Ranma adjusted the number of bags in his hands, closed his eyes tight, and took the first step inside.

Nothing happened.

The world hadn't ended, a siren hadn't gone off indicating him a man, and nobody had bothered him after that salesgirl. He timidly approached the walls of cosmetics and began looking at the large variety of things he could buy. Ranma was a little in awe, wondering what each thing did and why there were so many–was makeup really this complex and strange?

Feeling a little overwhelmed, he steeled himself a bit, and turned and went around a corner.

The same cosmetologist was hard at work, placing price tags on the racks. She noticed the redhead standing looking at her and gave Ranma a silent smile.

Ranma swallowed and said, "Yeah, uh, you'd mentioned helping me? I'm… kinda nervous about this. I was wondering if there was anything that was a little… subtle, you could sell me?"

"Subtle, huh?" The girl said, thinking. "You've never worn makeup before, right?"

Ranma nodded, and the girl nodded back before saying, "I'd recommend eyeshadow. Rather easy to apply, and if you do it right, almost never noticeable–unless you want it to be. I'd suggest eyeliner as well, but you might poke your eye out unless you've got the muscle control of a martial artist."

"I am a martial artist, actually!" Ranma brightened, the conversation heading back into familiar territory. "I've been training my whole life for martial arts."

"Then I'd definitely recommend waterproof makeup. Would you like me to show it to you?" she asked, and Ranma nodded.

"Wonderful. By the way,"–she bowed–"My name is Akemi. Saitou Akemi. What is yours?"

"Saotome Ranma." Ranma bowed in return. "I do appreciate your help, Akemi."

"It's my pleasure, Miss Saotome. It is, after all, my job. Follow me, please."

Akemi took Ranma down several racks before stopping and plucking something off the rack. She presented it to Ranma and said, "This might work. Royal Purple eyeshadow palette–waterproof and with just enough subtlety to add some flair to your appearance, but not gaudy. I think purple would look wonderful on you."

Ranma looked at the palette, it was five shades of purple of different intensity. He nodded and said, "I like it."

Akemi smiled. "I'm glad to hear that. Now, let's find you something eyeliner-wise. We want it to be slightly darker than your palette, but not black. Too many girls these days go for black eyeliner and end up not doing a good job. Let's do something different for you."

She soon found an eyeliner pencil that was a dark plum colour, and showed it to Ranma.

"This should work well on you too," Akemi said with a smile, and Ranma took it hesitantly in his hands. After looking at it, he gave another assenting nod.

"And now your free item!" Akemi proclaimed, before tapping a finger to her chin. "I'm trying to think what you'd… a-ha! I know just the thing!" She disappeared from sight before returning carrying something in her hand.

She handed it over, and Ranma looked at it.

"Mascara?" Ranma asked, and Akemi nodded.

"You've got very beautiful blue eyes, a little mascara to accentuate your eyelashes would do wonders to make your eyes look even _more beautiful_ ," Akemi said with a smile. "Does this satisfy you, Miss Saotome?"

"Yeah, actually. It does. Do you get a commission for sellin' these? 'cause if so, I'm ready to check out now."

"Absolutely, Miss Saotome! Right this way!"

Akemi marched Ranma to the cash register for the department, and gladly took his money. Sayuri had finished shopping and was impatiently looking around, and noticed Ranma paying for his makeup. Ducking behind a display so she wouldn't be seen, she spied closely on Ranma, who was none the wiser.

Quickly moving to a nearby aisle, she listened closely.

" _Here's your card and receipt back, Miss Saotome. Thank you for shopping with us, and have a fantastic day!_ " the woman said, and she could hear Ranma's footsteps moving in her general direction. Rounding the corner, she stopped and said, "Oh, there you are, Ranma!"

"Oh! Sayuri! Hey, um, I was just looking at the, uh, electronics department. The Nintendo, you know." He didn't look her in the eye and she simply smiled and patted him on the shoulder.

"Of course, buddy. Now come on, I think we're done, don't you agree?" she said with a sly smile on her face.

"Yeah, I'm ready to go home now," Ranma said quietly, and the two made their escape from the department store, taking a train back to Nerima ward in silence. Ranma was feeling something unusual in his stomach. It was a feeling he didn't quite understand, but it felt… rather nice.

Sayuri watched the boy carefully as a serene smile settled on his face, as he watched the urban sprawl of Tokyo go by.

" _We may have to do this again, he deserves to be happy…_ " She thought to herself as she kept an eye on Ranma as the train clattered down the tracks.


	6. Chapter 6

"Alright! Ladies, you'll be with me doing your evaluations! Boys, football time! Pick your captains!" Yumiko commanded with a sharp trill of her whistle. The boys cheered and thundered off to the soccer pitch while the girls looked at their coach with trepidation and fear.

Evidently, they'd heard complaints from the boys about how demanding and rigorous the fitness evaluations were. If being demanding and enforcing rigorous curriculum was a sign of failure, then what did the world ever consider to be "peak athleticism"? Olympians didn't even come to a grain of sand's worth of the effort she had invested in Ranma and herself.

It would not do to go lightly. That kind of thing bred weakness.

Yumiko looked at the assembled group of young women and said, "Ladies, the path of an athlete is fraught with perils. In order to master your craft, you must have rigid, unbending discipline. I want to see just how disciplined you are." She grinned ear to ear in a manner that made the girls gulp nervously.

At the end of their little evaluation, most of the girls looked like they'd been dragged through the mud. Yumiko stood before them and looked at her clipboard critically. She calculated a few things before a look of surprise crossed her face.

"Well, that's interesting," she said, before she lowered the clipboard and looked at the assembled female population of the first year Furinkan class. "As a class, you averaged higher than the boys. I must say, I am very impressed."

"Most of us are athletes, Saotome-sensei," one girl spoke up. "For instance, I'm the captain of the rhythmic gymnastics team."

Smatterings of agreement spread in the audience and Yumiko gave a nod. "It seems the girls of this school take their athletic skills and prowess more seriously than the male population. Even the kendoists don't seem to practice their craft much, save for Tatewaki."

She nodded appreciatively. "Next class, we'll do something… _more interesting_ and engaging than just having you do basic athletic exercises. Dismissed, ladies."

The girls made their way to change back into their uniforms, but Ranma hung behind.

"Hey," Ranma said, "did'ya mean that? The girls got higher scores?"

"Yes, Ranma. It seems my father and, by association, I myself were proven wrong once again. Even if I completely disregarded you and Akane–you being a world-class martial artist, and Akane having the body of a male–the girls still by and large performed better in this little exercise than the boys. I can't tell if that's a condemnation of how careless young men have become in physical fitness, or how dedicated young women are to proving that misogynistic claims like the ones I taught you are completely wrong," Genma said with a resigned sigh.

Ranma raised an eyebrow. "You've changed a lot since we moved into the Tendou Dojo, y'know."

"Well, Ranma… I'm sure you can understand why. I stand before you in this form, with this job… It's not easy to keep my biases when I'm actively proving them wrong just by _existing_ ," Genma said with another heavy sigh. He angrily pushed some loose hairs out of his face and fixed his son with a stare.

"Yeah, no, I get it, Pops. I get it completely. Havin' all your world views challenged so suddenly… it's tough," Ranma said, and Genma nodded.

"Indeed, Ranma. Kaori tells me that all this change will have some benefit to our lives. Maybe she's right, and maybe you and I are getting a second chance to… do things. I don't know all the answers."

"I never said ya did, Pops."

Genma shrugged and said, "Go get dressed and get to your next class. I've got to clean up out here."

"'kay, see you later, Dad." Ranma waved and went to go change.

As Ranma grew ever more distant, Genma felt a slight well of remorse bubble up from in his stomach, but he soon quashed it with the force of the kami as he remembered he wouldn't have to go about this alone. Kaori had promised him that she would stay by his side no matter how bad things got. He just hoped that all the stupid things he had done could be mended.

…

"Where the hell am I now!?" Ryouko snarled, checking her map, which was upside down in her hand. She glanced around and noticed two girls, one with dark hair, one with light hair, standing near a lamp post, talking animatedly. They were wearing the same teal dresses that she had seen the other day when she had challenged Ranma Saotome.

"Excuse me!" Ryouko said, waving her arms at the two girls. The girls looked at her and made their way over.

"You two–do you go to Furinkan High School?" Ryouko asked, and the blonde nodded.

"Yeah, we do," she said with a nod. "My name's Rie Tsukahara, second year student at Furinkan High, and Student Body Vice President. This is my friend Miki Saito," she said with a gesture to the brunette.

Miki bowed her head and said, "It is nice to meet you."

"Uh," Ryouko said, wiping her nose and bowing. "I'm Ryouko Hibiki. I need to get to Furinkan High. I have a debt of honour to settle with Ranma Saotome!"

"Ranma Saotome?" Miki said, tapping her finger to her chin. "I think she's… a first or second year student?"

"First year, same year as Akane Tendou," Rie said with a shrug. "If you promise not to blow up the school, we'll take you to her."

"Yeah, okay," Ryouko said, frowning. "as long as I get to finally defeat that honorless _shrew_!" She ended her sentence with a shout, thrusting her fist in the air.

Miki adjusted her glasses and looked at her friend.

"I'm a little concerned," she said quietly. "I'd rather not make Ranma Saotome our enemy by inviting her rival to fight her."

"Shh, it'll be okay Miki," Rie said, "If we take some control of this situation and guide it, we can prevent any massive collateral damage. While Tatewaki may not care about keeping the school calm and at peace, I do."

"Fair point," Miki said with a sigh, "Okay, how do we give Saotome advanced warning?"

"There's a phone booth on our way to school. I'll just call Nabiki Tendou and tell her."

"Tell her we want 7% of the profit. Each. Consider it a payment for our taking control of the situation," Miki said, glancing at her friend with a serious expression on her face.

"She won't accept 7%. She'll go for 5, probably. Either way, let's get going, and help this one find her way," Rie said.

Ryouko quietly watched the two girls discuss profit margins, and snorted in disgust. She had to unfortunately have their help to find Ranma Saotome, so she would say nothing–but the dishonorable profiteering of gambling, and doing it so blatantly in front of her; it reeked of dishonor.

…

"Well, that's an interesting development," Nabiki said as she placed the phone down in its cradle. She glanced at Ranma Saotome, who was standing next to her with a raised eyebrow.

"That was a friend of mine, Rie-chan; she's Student Body Vice President. She and Saito-san just picked up your little friend and are bringing her to Furinkan. You ready, Saotome?" Nabiki said, looking sharply at Ranma.

"Yeah, I'm ready," Ranma said with a nod, rubbing his neck. "And they just gave you this information? Why'd they tell us ahead of time?"

"Elementary, my dear Watson," Nabiki said with a smile, which soon faded. "You have no idea what that means, do you?"

"No, not really," Ranma said with a frown.

Nabiki rolled her eyes and sighed. "It's money, Ranma," she said. "They negotiated a six percent cut from profits made from the fight—each—and another four percent for yourself."

"Four percent?" Ranma asked, and Nabiki nodded.

"There are some naïve people who are looking out for you, you sweet boy," she said, gently patting Ranma's cheek. "There'll be a fight no matter what you want out of this. It's going to be in a place that'll have minimal collateral damage, probably one of the open fields near the school."

"Alright, I guess we'll get going," Ranma said, slinging his bag over his shoulder. "No sense in makin' them wait."

…

As the House slowly emptied of people–Ranma, Genma, Nabiki and Akane off to Furinkan, and Kaori off to a meeting of the ward's administrative council, Kasumi enjoyed the stillness in the usually hectic Tendou Dojo. She started doing her chores but before long she heard the chime of the bell at the front door. Making her way there, she opened it.

A dark-haired boy stood in the doorway, with a dark-haired girl standing next to him. The boy was only a few centimetres shorter than Kasumi, but the girl was taller than both of them. Blinking in surprise, she said, "Um, yes, can I help you?"

The boy nodded. "I am wondering if you know anything about Ranma Saotome. I am looking for her."

"You're looking for Ranma Saotome?" Kasumi asked.

"Yes," the boy said, wiping sweat off his forehead with his shirt sleeve. "My name is Ukyou Kuonji. She and I were close friends."

"Oh! Um… _she_ is at school right now. You and your friend are more than welcome to wait inside with me until they come back later today."

"I'd very much appreciate that," Ukyou said with a smile. He gestured to the girl. "This is my friend, Konatsu Kenzan."

"It is a pleasure to meet you." She bowed deeply, and Kasumi smiled.

"My name is Kasumi Tendou, and it's my pleasure as well. Right this way." She gestured for the two of them to follow.

Walking down the corridor, Konatsu spoke. "Miss Tendou, this is a very beautiful house you have."

"Thank you, I do my best to keep every inch of it spotless. So you say you're friends of Ranma's?" Kasumi asked, and Ukyo nodded.

"Well," he said with a sigh, "I am–or was. She and I haven't seen each other in about a decade. When she and her father moved into my neighbourhood, my father tasked me to keep an eye on her well-being. She was… six at the time, and I was nine."

"I see," Kasumi said quietly. "Would either of you like some tea?"

"Yes, please," Ukyou said with a smile.

"Perhaps you can tell me more about back then," Kasumi said as she went to the kitchen.

Kasumi returned with tea, and set it on the table. She took her seat, and served some cups to her two guests, and waited while they took their first sips. Ukyou then nodded, as if he was ready to start.

"Well, it begins like this…" he said, a wistful look appearing on his face.

…

Vice Principal Haruna Tsukuda and Yumiko Saotome stood on the edge of the field, a large number of the student body crowding the stands that had been erected.

"Saotome-san, this is a great day to display the pageantry of martial arts!" She proclaimed with a grin, and Yumiko raised her eyebrow.

"With all respect, Haruna, isn't this a bit dangerous for all the students here who aren't martial artists?" Yumiko said, looking at the many students to whom she had personally given terrible ratings on their general physical health.

"Of course, but your daughter is disciplined, is she not? I am more than sure she can dispatch any problems that may arise," Haruna said serenely.

Haruna noticed Nabiki Tendou out of the corner of her eye, collecting money from the students. She turned a blind eye to those activities as it never seemed to escalate to anything serious, and always seemed to be a voluntary act on the students' behalf. Looking at Ranma, she saw the girl, who had changed into a sports bra and a pair of slacks, was performing her kata.

She walked over to Nabiki Tendou and slipped her two ¥10,000 bills, with a gesture to Ranma. Nabiki gave her a nod, and had one of her lieutenants scribble down her wager. She walked back over to Yumiko and said, "I trust your daughter's combat capability. Most of the students seem to be betting on the stranger who can detonate parts of the ground. Something tells me we'll be in for a nice surprise."

"Ranma was trained to give nothing away. Our family style is focused on combining styles into something that the enemy cannot read. Your attacks are useless if you telegraph them from a mile off," Yumiko said quietly.

Yumiko sighed and watched her son continue his kata before she noticed three figures approaching on the horizon.

"Here they come!" she said, and the crowd erupted into a roar of excitement. Ranma stopped his kata and watched at the approaching figure of Ryouko, Rie and Miki. They helped Ryouko to her starting position in the field and quickly made their way to the stands, where they talked animatedly with Nabiki before settling down to watch.

Yumiko and Haruna approached the center of the small field and Yumiko began to speak. "This shall be a duel between Ranma Saotome and Ryouko Hibiki. You will observe disciplined behaviour during this fight. When one person in the fight is unable to continue, or surrenders, the fight will cease immediately. Do you understand?"

The two martial artists nodded.

"Approach each other, bow once, and move six shaku away."

Ranma and Ryouko approached each other, and bowed to each other once in respect.

"I'm gonna kick your ass, Saotome," Ryouko said with a smirk. Ranma gave an indignant scoff, before turning and moving to the six shaku distance.

"Begin!" Yumiko shouted. Ryouko and Ranma circled for a moment before Ryouko launched her first assault, a flurry of kick and punch combos that Ranma easily evaded. Ranma tried his own, but she adeptly blocked him and managed to land a few hits on him in the process. Ranma backed off and re-evaluated the situation. Even without her little umbrella of death, she was still an adept martial artist just the same.

Old feelings of competition flooded back to him, and he smirked.

"Just like old times, eh, Ryouko?" he said, circling around her.

Ryouko said nothing, and the look of determination on her face remained still as ever. She launched another attack, this time attempting to drop in on Ranma from the air. Ranma jumped backwards and the girl drove into the soft earth, causing dirt and rock to eject everywhere, a new pockmark forming in a concentric circle in the field.

Ranma took advantage of the situation to launch a barrage of combos against her, and landed about half of them before she blocked and scored an uppercut against him. Ranma flew backwards, and tumbled a bit before landing on his feet. Rubbing the place on his jaw where her first had made contact, he grinned.

"Oh, fuck yeah. _Just like old times._ You wanna go, Ryo-chan? Let's go," he said, before Ryouko charged him.

He and Ryouko got into a quick-paced back and forth of intermittent hits and misses, before Ranma scored his own good hit, sending the girl flying into the treeline. There was silence for a minute before the girl came charging out of the forest, screaming.

She threw a number of things at Ranma, and the martial artist dodged, noticing they were yellow boomerangs made from the same material as her bandana. Dodging the first couple, Ranma was soon waylaid as Ryouko attempted to follow up the distraction with an attack. Ranma dodged most of the hits but got tossed towards the stands. Landing just shy of the stands, he flipped himself back up but got walloped hard, and went flying off the premises.

"Should we call it?" Yumiko said as Ryouko went after her son.

"No, this is more fun," Haruna said, before the hordes of students and faculty went charging off towards where the two martial artists had disappeared.

Ranma's landing destroyed a small restroom in the nearby park. Crawling out of the concrete and dust, Ranma glared at Ryouko who landed with a skid, tearing up some of the walkway.

"You're destroying collateral property, you idiot! Just like back then!" Ranma shouted, and Ryouko snarled, picking up the water tank that had once been attached to the building and hurling it at Ranma. Ranma dodged it and leapt over some of the rubble and landing some distance away from Ryouko. The two sized each other up patiently as students began to filter in around them, watching the fight expectantly.

Ryouko picked up another large object–this time an air conditioner unit, and prepared to hurl it at Ranma. Ranma moved in and as the two collided, Ryouko was knocked backwards, and the unit went flying from her hands towards the crowd of students. Many of them dispersed, but Rie, Miki and Nabiki, who weren't paying any attention to the situation at hand, hadn't.

Ranma raced to catch it and managed to punch it with full force, sending it tumbling across a small duck pond and into a number of trees. Rie, Miki and Nabiki had realized their error and were staring in shock at the crumpled and mangled A/C unit.

Ranma looked at the three of them and said, "Are you three okay?"

"Yeah, we… we're fine," Rie said, feeling herself to make sure she was still alive. "That was close," she said faintly.

"Yes, it was," Ranma said, before turning to glare at Ryouko, who was sitting on her ass, staring at him in shock.

"Ryouko, you _idiot!_ Do you realize how close you came to _severely injuring_ , or outright killing somebody?" Ranma shouted, glaring at the girl.

Ryouko stood up and wobbled a bit, the adrenaline finally wearing off. She looked at the wreckage and had the good grace to blush.

Ranma asked, "Ryouko, what is it that I did to make you so willing to do all this? You weren't like this when we were kids!"

Ryouko clenched her fist, turned on her heel, and took off in a run. It wasn't long before she disappeared completely.

"She's certainly capable of getting lost easily," Ranma sighed, before looking around at the carnage and shaking his head. "I accept full responsibility for this," Ranma said quietly.

"No, nonsense," Yumiko said with a roll of her eyes. "It's valiant of you to do that, Ranma, but it's not necessary. The ward has excellent insurance against martial artist damages, and you didn't exactly do any of this. Oh, yes, and I suppose by merit of a technical victory, Ranma wins."

Ranma swore he saw yen signs in Nabiki's eyes at that news.

…

Ranma emerged from the girl's locker room after showering to find Nabiki, Rie and Miki standing around. Rie was the first to speak.

"Ranma, on behalf of myself and the Student Body, thank you for saving our lives. We were careless and so wrapped up in money we became distracted. It won't happen again," She said, a deeply apologetic tone carrying on her voice.

"It's not a problem, you guys. I… do this a lot, you know?"

"We can tell," Nabiki said with a genuine smile, a rarity if Ranma ever saw one. "Anyway. After dispensing the wins to those who bet _for you_ , we managed to get a profit of ¥163,450 today. A lot of people made the mistake of betting against you, Saotome, the _fools_ … so now we have to divvy it all up. First," she said as she pulled a number of bills off and found some coins in her pouch.

"Ranma, you get ¥6,538." Nabiki handed him that sum of money, before turning to Rie and Miki, and dispensing ¥9,807 to each of them. She separated another ¥60,000 and stuck it in a more secure pocket before sticking the rest back where she had pulled it from.

"All in a day's profit," Nabiki said before looking at Ranma. "Saotome, we're going to be having a slumber party in the dojo tomorrow, and you're the main guest."

"Wha?" Ranma asked in surprise.

"Yep. Don't ask too much about it; all your friends want to show you some affection, so we… you know, decided to do that," she said, shrugging.

"Okay, fine by me, I guess. At least I don't have to go far."

"Not far at all, Ranma-chan," Nabiki said with a wink. Ranma blushed and glared at Nabiki in annoyance.

…

The end of the school day came without interruptions. Ranma had somehow gotten through the day. With his celebrity status among the student body becoming even stronger, he had people asking him how he learned all those crazy moves, and if he could punch or crush random things. One of his teachers had even bribed him with an extra credit opportunity to raise his grade if he could tear a textbook in half with his hands.

It was rather annoying to him, and his new found circle of friends had played interference, with Rie giving thorough tongue-lashings to students she saw harassing Ranma in the hallways. Akane, Sayuri and Yuka had flanked Ranma on all sides in class, and prevented anybody from talking to him directly as well.

His day over, he ignored the pile of love notes in his locker, and made his way outside.

He said with a loud sigh, "What an exhausting day,"

"Yes, that was unusually chaotic. You seem to be very popular," Akane said quietly, and Ranma shrugged.

"I don't know why," Ranma said with a frown. "I'm not exactly a super nice person."

"Eh," Akane shrugged. "I'd just roll with it."

When they arrived home, Ranma noticed that two additional pairs of shoes were sitting in the genkan, a pair of dainty flats decorated with intricate embroidery, and a pair of combat boots. Slipping his own shoes off, Ranma walked to the family room and nearly had a heart attack at the sight of the person exiting it; He'd remember that face anywhere.

"Ucchan!?" Ranma said in shock, dropping his bags on the floor.

"Ranchan!" Ukyou shouted in even more shock, before the two collided in a big hug, with Ukyou lifting Ranma off the ground a good four or five inches. "You're alive! Oh thank Kami!"

Setting the redhead down, Ukyou gently played with a lock of Ranma's hair. "You went red? It's a cute colour on you."

"Ucchan… uh, wow, it's been a long time," Ranma said in surprise, "What's up?"

"Well," Ukyou said quietly. "It's been a long time since I've seen you. You and your father left under such… shadowy circumstances, that… well, I have been wanting to find you ever since. You were the sweetest person I'd ever met in my life, and my favorite little companion."

He turned to Akane and said, "She and I went everywhere together and I taught her all I know."

"What's that?" Akane asked.

"How to cook, some martial arts moves, how to fish, how to climb trees, things kids do," Ukyou said with a smile. "I've got the meanest recipe for okonomiyaki in Japan."

Ranma's eyes lit up in remembrance. "Oh, yeah! Ucchan's Okonomiyaki was the _good stuff_!"

"Glad you liked it, kiddo." Ukyou gently rubbed Ranma's hair before looking around.

"So where's your old man?" he asked conspiratorially.

Ranma said, "Uh… nowhere right now. There's a lot of things that have… changed since then. Why don't you wait around until you meet the other Tendous?"

"Kasumi was just telling me about her lovely sisters and mother. I can't wait to meet them." The boy gave a bright smile. Then he noticed the small cuts and bruises on Ranma's face and arms.

"What happened? Why do you have cuts and bruises? Who hurt you, Ranchan?" He seemed alarmed and grabbed Ranma's arms in worry.

Ranma wriggled out of his grasp and said, "It's nothing, Ucchan. I got into a fight with some girl from when I was a kid. Don't worry. I'm not a weak six year old no more, I'm the strongest martial artist in Japan."

Ukyou smiled and bowed his head. "You'll have to forgive me, Ranchan… I'm so used to seeing the little six year old girl in a denim jumper who was so lost and kinda helpless; it's hard for me to see you as the brilliant young woman you're becoming."

Ranma blushed some. Ukyou's praise was making him feel really weird, so he decided to change the subject. "Uhhh, what's for dinner, Kasumi?"

Kasumi smiled. "Ukyou-san is going to be making okonomiyaki for us! What a treat!"

"I'll say! Akane, you haven't lived until you've tried Ucchan's okonomiyaki," Ranma said, brightening up with a smile.

The sound of a door opening drew everyone's attention, and Genma walked in, still in his work clothes. After placing his canvas bag on a small peg attached to the wall, he stopped when he noticed the newcomer. "Um, hello. Ranma, who is this?"

Ukyou bowed deeply. "I am Ukyou Kuonji, an old friend of Ranma's."

Genma didn't say anything before realization dawned on his face. He bowed and said, "Yumiko Saotome. I'm Ranma's mother."

"Ranma, you didn't tell me you'd found your mother!"

"I did, in a manner of speaking, yes," Ranma said, and looked at Genma quietly. "She's been more of a parent to me than my father ever was."

A flash of hurt crossed Genma's face but disappeared. He said, "Well, Kaori will be home soon. What are we planning for supper?"

"Ucchan's makin' okonomiyaki, Ma!" Ranma said with a grin, and Genma's blinked in surprise, barely suppressing a smile. If there was one thing Genma missed about the whole thing, it was that he had been denied Kuonji family okonomiyaki all these years. They truly were the experts of the craft.

"By the way, Ranma," Ukyou said, "there's someone I'd like you to meet; she's been traveling with me for some time. She's using the furo right now, but once she's out, I'll introduce you to each other. Anyway, like I said–I promised my father I would watch out for you, and I keep my promises."

"Ucchan…" Ranma said quietly. "You don't have to always do that, you can do your own thing."

Ukyou wrapped Ranma in a hug and said, "I missed you too much to let you go again. I want to be in your life, Ranchan."

The door opened again, and Kaori came through the doorway, slipping her heels off and stepping up onto the wooden walkway. She smiled and said, "Who's this nice young man hugging Ranma?"

"Ukyou Kuonji, ma'am. Old friend of Ranma's."

"Kaori Tendou," Kaori said with a bow. "Welcome to my humble abode. Come and sit for awhile; tell me all about yourself and what brings you here."


	7. Chapter 7

Ukyou sipped his tea and said, "As I was saying earlier–Ranma and I were friends back in the day. My father was concerned that given some of the attitudes of her father, I should do well to keep an eye on her, and so I did. I took her on as a sort of protégé and taught her most of what I knew. Not long after she turned 10, she disappeared off the face of the earth, along with my father's okonomiyaki cart."

Ranma blinked and said, "Your father's okonomiyaki cart?"

"Of course _you_ didn't take it, but your scumbag father did. My father was different after that, and I set out on my own journey not long after to find you and avenge my family from such a criminal man," Ukyou said quietly, clenching his fist. The sound of footsteps echoed down the hall and a beautiful young lady appeared in the doorway.

"Ukyou-sama, what's going on?" She asked, confused.

Ukyou grinned and said, "Ranma, this is my friend Konatsu Kenzan. Ko-chan, this is my friend I was looking for, Ranma Saotome."

Konatsu peered at Ranma carefully and bowed deeply. "It is an honor to meet you, Ranma. Ukyou has talked quite highly of you in his stories."

"Yes, well," Kaori said with a smile, "I insist you stay with us, Ukyou. My house is your house."

"Oh, that's very generous of you," Ukyou said with a smile, and Kaori turned to face Yumiko, who was trying to not look at anybody in particular.

"Is the guest bedroom prepared, _Yumiko_?" Kaori said, her voice laden with venom. Yumiko flushed a bit and nodded quietly.

"Good, you can take the guest room, Ukyou. Here, I'll show you where it is," Kaori said, rising to her feet. She took the guests upstairs, and an awkward silence settled over the room.

"Ranma, why does he think you're a girl?" Akane asked, before Ranma shrugged.

"Beats me, I never told him I was a girl or nothin'. I guess I was kinda androgynous as a little kid, and had long hair so… I dunno," he said, shrugging. "All pretty coincidental I'd say."

"Well, not entirely. Just because you had an androgynous appearance before does not mean you're automatically female," Akane said, her face reddening some. "You should really tell Ukyou the truth. He'll understand, he seems to care a great deal for you."

"You're right, I'll do it later; not worried about that right this second," Ranma muttered to himself, rubbing his forehead. "Nabiki talk to you about a slumber party?"

"Yeah. It was kinda surprising; she's not really into stuff like that. She seemed intent on heavily lobbying for us to have a little slumber party for you. I'm not sure why, but I think we'll have a fun time."

"I guess," Ranma muttered.

Ukyou returned downstairs and said, "Alright, I'm gonna start preparing dinner. Ranma-chan, would you like to help?"

"Sure, Ukyou!" Ranma said, following the taller young man into the kitchen.

As they entered the kitchen, Ukyou stopped and turned. He looked pensively at Ranma before saying, "Are you really okay, Ranma? Like, seriously. It's just you and I now."

"Yes, Ucchan. I'm okay," Ranma said with a smile, gently hugging his friend. "There's some stuff that's gone on you should know about, but I'd rather enjoy this evening, wouldn't you?"

"Ranchan, tell me, please," he said, and Ranma sighed.

"I was born a guy, Ukyou. I ain't really a girl," Ranma said, and Ukyou blinked in surprise.

"Huh? But… does this mean you're like me?"

Ranma folded his arms over his chest and said, "Uh, well, you see, there's this place called Jusenkyou. Uh, me and my old man got cursed by the Spring of Drowned Girl. I'm _actually_ a boy who turns into girl with cold water… and what'd'ya mean, I'm like you?" he asked, raising his eyebrow.

"Well, I thought you knew? I'm a trans man, Ranma. I was born female, but I'm transitioning to male," Ukyou said, his eyebrows rising in response.

"Oh, _hell_. Well, I guess I was right and you were wrong, Ucchan."

"You saw me as a boy when we were younger? Funny how that works out," Ukyou laughed. "So your old man fell into the girl curse spring too? Where'd he get off to–" He said, before he stopped dead and looked at Ranma. "The woman out there?"

"Yumiko?" Ranma asked, leaning back against the counter. "Yeah. That's him."

Ukyou's face reddened and Ranma grabbed his wrist before he could storm into the family room with the knife he was holding in his hand.

"Please don't," Ranma implored. "He's a big idiot, but he's trying to make amends. Give it time. His girlfriend'll make him atone for what he did to you and your father."

Ukyou glared at nothing before nodding. "Fine. I'll let him make the first move, if only for you, Ranchan."

Ukyou turned back to his food prep, and Ranma eagerly helped his friend prepare the meal for the evening. Watching him perform the craft he did best harkened Ranma back to their youth, when they would go fishing and Ranma's friend would expertly craft a campfire meal as they watched the stars. These feelings of fondness and closeness were seeping back into Ranma's heart as he watched his friend perform his culinary mastery.

After Ukyou had finished preparing the food, Ranma clapped and said, "You did a great job, Ukyou!"

"Thanks, Ranchan. It's a labour of love," he said with a smile.

"I imagine," Ranma said, peering at the assortment of okonomiyaki that Ukyou was serving onto plates.

…

Dinner was a silent affair, with everyone enjoying themselves. Ukyou was beaming with praise as everyone gushed about the quality. He said, "I can cook more than just okonomiyaki, but it's a signature dish. When I said I taught Ranma a great deal, this was one of the only things she didn't learn."

"Ucchan's exaggerating, I'm not that great at it. Though it was certainly somethin' that made campin' in central China a lot less sucky," Ranma said, gladly taking a bowl of ice cream offered by Kasumi.

"You're underselling yourself, Ranchan. Out of all the people I've tried to teach culinary arts, you and Konatsu are the only ones who've made any progress with your craft," Ukyou said with a smile.

"With a household that has three good cooks, I'm going to need to go the gym more often," Kaori said glumly, gently prodding her stomach with a finger. "Maybe we can set up a rotation for Ukyou, Ranma and Kasumi to switch off? I'm sure Kasumi would like more nights off like this."

Kasumi's face lit up at the suggestion, and Ukyou nodded.

"I have no objections," he said. "What about you, Ranma?"

Ranma shrugged and said, "No, fine by me. I kinda like cooking anyway. Count me in."

"Wonderful!" Kaori said, clapping her hands together.

"Though I will warn ya," Ranma said, shaking his head, "I tend to go a little spicy with my cuisine. I love spice."

"Maybe you should make them your fireball curry, Ranma," Genma said, chuckling. "My colon was certainly cleaned out after that one. Do you remember the one monk you fed it to he looked like his face was going to implode."

"Fireball curry, Ranma?" Ukyou asked, leaning forward in interest. "You made your own recipe?"

"Yeah, it's a pretty basic curry, but I took some creative license with it. Not quite the punching spice you'd get in America, but certainly not somethin' ta take lightly. Everyone who tried it says it's pretty good. But most of those people were travellers like us, or ascetics. Not always a good measurement of taste."

"I'm sure it's quite an experience," Ukyou said. "What spices do you use in it?"

"Shichimi Togarashi, koregusu and sansho pepper, mostly. Right combination of that plus the fact it's already curry, and hoo boy."

"Hmm," Kasumi said. "Sounds like overkill, but I'm curious."

"I'll make it tomorrow night if everyone wants?"

"Not tomorrow, I'd rather not have our guests clenching their stomachs in anguish," Nabiki said, shaking her head. "How about Saturday night; that way we don't have class in the morning or anything like that, and we can suffer at home?"

"Fair enough," Ranma said with a laugh. "I'd be happy to make it for y'all."

…

"Why did you steal his father's okonomiyaki cart, Genma?" Kaori asked as she pulled her nightgown down around her head, glaring at her boyfriend.

Genma was in the middle of changing out of his work clothes, and was fussing with the clasp of his bra. He sighed and said, "It's not for good reasons. Ukyou's father and I were conducting some business, and I got drunk and don't quite remember the rest. I ended up running off with the cart, probably to sell it for supplies. I think there may have been something about attempting to marry the two off or something like it."

Kaori watched Genma finally get the bra off and toss it into the laundry basket before grabbing and pulling on a t-shirt.

"You should be working to make amends with this boy. Obviously you had a great enough impact on his life that he followed Ranma for years to make sure he was safe," Kaori said, wagging her finger at him.

"Yes, but how do I make amends for it?" Genma asked.

"Well, I'd suggest _talking_ to the boy about it," Kaori said, shrugging. "That'd be the best way of going about it."

"Yes, you're right. But I'm tired, I'd rather not dig deeper into my past right now," he said with a resigned sigh, climbing into their shared bed and laying down facing the ceiling. Kaori could see the worry evident on his face, same with the guilt. Kaori leaned over and kissed him on the lips.

"Feeling guilt just means you're not completely gone, Genma. But there are things you've got to sort out before that feeling will go away, and matters pertaining to your wife are some of them," she said quietly, stroking his raven hair.

"I know, but how do you tell your son you've lied to him about his mother for twelve years and then look him in the eye again?" Genma said quietly.

"Tell the truth, tell him exactly that; it's the only way this will stop hurting so much, Genma. Tell him the truth about everything, show him the reasons for all these things that are happening," she said with a shrug. "But in the mean time, try to get some sleep. You're no use to anybody if you're suffering from insomnia."

"I guess you're right," Genma sighed, rubbing his eyes. "She's like a bad nightmare I can't get to go away, you know?" he said quietly. "The only reason she let us go was because I placated her fantasies. Those first few years I thought if I did it, she'd love me again, but after _the Master_ … well, I'm glad we've come back around to sensibility."

"Mmm," Kaori said quietly. "I promise, Genma, she'll never bother you, not while I draw breath on this Earth. If I need to, I'll bring the full brunt of the Liberal Democratic Party and my little connections down on her. And this promise extends to Ranma, alright? You two are always safe with me."

"Just like how it used to be, eh, Tendou?" Genma chuckled to himself.

Kaori smiled knowingly at her boyfriend.

As the two settled down to sleep, Genma didn't find any sleep. He was instead thinking about the events earlier that day.

Ranma's words—that Yumiko was a better parent than Genma had ever been—had pierced him deeply. Genma's pride and self-esteem were wounded, but he knew it was pretty true. His father and wife had damaged him so much that by the time he had a child of his own, Ranma had suffered the brunt of Genma's shortcomings. It was unfair to the child that he be such a terrible parent, and the masquerade they had adopted gave them a much needed connection that they had long lacked.

He had been denying it for some time to this point, but he found himself almost preening at some of the praise brought his way for being Ranma's mother. He found that he liked the feelings that came with it; it made him feel a warmth in his stomach he hadn't felt since his wedding day. However, unlike that feeling, Genma had an inkling that this wouldn't sour away into frustration and contempt.

The feeling itself was a mixture of pride and pleasure; and he wasn't quite sure how to feel about that. He was quite enjoying the role he was taking on as Yumiko, and it certainly didn't hurt that his new form was something that looked like it'd sprang from the cover of a fashion magazine. He'd missed having hair immensely after having gone bald at 25, and now he had a surplus of it, soft, shiny and supple, just like his mother. It could be frustrating sometimes when his hair was left uncontrolled, but it was a trivial matter to put it up in a manner that kept it from getting in his way.

The topic of his mother having surfaced in his mind, emotion welled up in him and he blinked back tears. He remembered the first time he'd looked in a mirror and saw his own reflection after getting the Nyannichuan curse. It looked almost like a ghost had been standing in the mirror. A little makeup and the right hairstyle, and Genma looked like an almost carbon copy of his mother… or perhaps his own twin. It was a strange thing to think about.

But didn't Ranma look like Nodoka? His son's cursed form took heavily after Nodoka in the face–the gentle and soft rounded facial features were a trademark of Nodoka's family–but he knew that everything else about Ranma was definitely a hand-me-down from the Saotome family.

He sighed. He didn't have all the answers, and so many of the questions he was asking himself would have to go unanswered. But ultimately, he knew there was one universal truth that left him feeling awkward and in a bind; being Yumiko was strangely comfortable. He found very little problem in being Yumiko and taking on the mannerisms of a woman. He quietly wondered if another man in his situation, with his curse and his… whatever it was from those tribal warriors, would feel the same way, or completely different.

He didn't sleep that night, worrying over the implications he dared not take seriously.

…

"Hey, Akane," Ranma said, rolling onto his side to face the young woman.

She opened one of her eyes and said, "Yeah, Ranma?"

"Have you ever been to a slumber party?" he asked quietly. "What do girls _do_ there, anyway? Some of the girls I knew back when I went to that one school would have them, but I never found out exactly what they did there."

Akane yawned and murmured, "I dunno, Ranma. I've never been to one either. I'm guessing they do makeup and hair, watch movies and eat stuff. That's about all I know. I'll make sure you have a good time, no worries…"

"Alright," Ranma sighed, rolling onto his back again, looking at the ceiling of the bedroom.

"Are you nervous, Ranma?" Akane asked, and Ranma sighed again.

"I dunno, maybe? Part of me is objecting really badly to this because you know, guys don't do this–but I'm curious enough to go with it."

"You don't have to do anything that makes you uncomfortable, Ranma," Akane said quietly. "If you just want to eat your weight in junk food and watch kitschy films, that's your choice."

"Alright, Akane," he said. Then, before he could stop himself, he asked "How did you know you were a girl?"

Akane opened her eyes again and looked at Ranma carefully before sighing. She moved to sit up, resting against the headboard. Ranma could tell she was deep in thought, as if trying to process a complex riddle.

"It's difficult to describe dysphoria. Let me ask you a question. How does a fish know that the ocean is wet?"

"Huh?" Ranma asked, confused.

"How does a fish know that the ocean is wet?" she asked again, and Ranma blinked in question, before realization hit.

"…They can't," he said quietly, and Akane nodded.

"They can't, because it's all they know. For people who have dysphoria, they've been in it their whole lives and it… becomes this state of being that exists without knowledge of something else. When I dress like the girl I am or do something that I consider confirming of my gender, I experience gender euphoria and that's where the screen of dysphoria breaks. It's like living in a world that's only black and white, and then suddenly seeing colour for the first time."

"I see. I don't quite understand, but I see," Ranma said quietly, rubbing his eyes in frustration.

"It's not always evident until you experience euphoria. Do you think you may be experiencing dysphoria, Ranma?"

"Is it okay to say I don't know? Being a boy is all I've known, and all the time I've spent at school… I'm a little confused, is all," Ranma said, the tired look on his face even more pronounced to Akane.

"I hope you're not doing this because you feel you have to, Ranma," Akane said quietly. "you don't have to change who you are for us."

"No, it hasn't anything to do with y'all. This is all me, thinking about things."

"Well, you should know that I'm totally cool with whatever you decide, Ranma. I think you deserve happiness, given some of the fucked things your dad put you through."

Ranma laughed and said, "Thanks, Akane."

Akane giggled some and said, "I do mean that in the nicest possible way, of course."

"I know," Ranma said with a grin. "You and I are both a little awkward at socializing, but I know you mean well."

"Good night," Akane said.

"'night," Ranma replied.


	8. Chapter 8

A sense of dread and fear lingered in the pit of Ranma's stomach as he got up to start his morning. While he could throw his attention into school long enough to distract from the planned festivities of that night, Ranma still felt quite anxious about the whole thing–part of him was voraciously objecting to the whole charade because he was a boy and _boys didn't do this kind of thing_ , but another part of him was quietly cheering at a chance to experiment and do something new and unique. A sense of belonging and self-discovery warmed his heart.

By now, the morning routine was second nature. Wake up, wipe the crust out of his eyes, head downstairs and spar with someone–either his father, Kaori or Akane–and then do everything else he needed to do. This morning, Genma was already in the Dojo doing calisthenics. His father's own aqua blue eyes stared into his, and the two men-currently-women bowed to acknowledge each other's presence.

After a short light spar to get the blood pumping, the two went off to the furo together. After washing, soaking and splashing himself back into his female form, Ranma wrapped a towel around his chest and made his way upstairs. The rest of the sequence was simple–boxers, bra, pants, shirt, over-shirt, socks, shoes, hair–and down he went to get some breakfast.

He and Akane left at the same time as they always did, and made their way to Furinkan High School. Being briefly detained by Kuno's prancing prose and his attempts to flirt with both of them, the two students made their way into school. Sitting at his desk, Ranma dug out his school supplies, and waited for Yoshida-sensei to come in to start their morning homeroom.

Instead, Vice Principal Tsukuda and his own father entered the room, with the vice principal standing at the head of the classroom with a solemn face.

"Good morning, students. I regret to inform you all that your homeroom teacher, Yoshida-sensei, has had to take an immediate leave of absence due to medical issues. I assure you that he is recovering, but will not be returning to our hallowed halls. In his stead, I would like to introduce you to your new homeroom teacher."

"Saotome Yumiko," Yumiko said as she bowed gracefully and smiled at the students. Some of the students glanced at Ranma who was looking at his parent with a look of interest on his face. The vice principal vacated the room, and Yumiko launched into her own newly rehearsed routine as their homeroom teacher, taking attendance, setting up organization for day duty, and speaking to the students who were struggling with their classes.

Ranma eyed his father carefully and wondered if his old man was feeling the same way he was about his curse and his social interactions.

A few minutes later, a bentō dropped onto Ranma's desk. Looking up from his doodling, Ranma made eye contact with his parent. Ranma noted a tired look around her eyes, and wondered why. She gave him a small smile and a nod before returning to the front of the class and striking up a conversation with a student who had some questions for her about their homework.

…

When lunch time rolled around, Ranma pulled the bentō out and unwrapped it. A very nice looking assortment of food welcomed him along with a small note. Taking the note off the box and opening it, he recognized the rough, scrawled kana and kanji of his father.

" _Stay strong! You can do it, I believe in you! I know high school can be stressful and hard to deal with sometimes–but remember your training and you'll be fine. I have faith in you._ _がんばって_ _!_ " was scrawled in his untidy writing, accompanied with a shaded heart. The encouraging words made Ranma smile.

Akane looked at her friend with interest, and said, "Ranma, are you alright?"

"I… don't know. I think I might be," he said, dumbfounded. He handed the note to Akane who read it before she grinned at Ranma.

"This is really sweet, Ranma!" she said, handing the note back to him.

"What's weird is that… my father would never do something like this, genuinely. He'd tell me to stop being such a girl and pay attention in class. But this note, telling me that he understands how stressful things are, and telling me to do my best– I'm so confused," Ranma muttered.

"It may be that he's trying to invest the effort in being a good person for once, Ranma. I wouldn't worry too much about ulterior motives," Akane said in an attempt to soothe him.

"I guess, it's just surprising," Ranma said. He looked at the food in front of him. Evidently his father had put in his best effort to prepare a loving, homecooked meal for him. Taking a bite, Ranma was pleasantly surprised; he'd always assumed Genma was taste blind, but here he was making food that was actually edible. It was far less enjoyable than that of Kasumi and Ukyou; but it was certainly palatable.

Ranma enjoyed his lunch and worked on some of his homework, sparing occasional glances at his father, who was helping a student with their math homework.

…

Yumiko quietly walked out to the field after lunch, and took in the radiant sun. Feelings of resolution burned in her stomach, and felt stronger than the biting feelings of exhaustion from a night without sleep.

Her thought process the previous night hadn't stopped, and she had come to the realization that she needed to step up as a parent to rectify much of the bad things she'd done in the past. A few false starts later, Kasumi and Kaori had helped her prepare a lunch for Ranma that was edible, and could pass well enough for proper human food instead of animal feed.

Yumiko found inspiration in the memories of her mother. While Yumiko could never be the same woman without destroying what it meant to be herself, she could at the very least take a page from her in the realm of caring for one's child. She was determined to consciously eradicate every vestige of her father from herself, and be a better person.

But she still felt nervous, though maybe not over Ranma's specific feelings; he was a smart kid and would manage, and reach out to someone if he needed help.

What had her more concerned was her own life. Since Jusenkyou, things had begun rolling in new directions and were gaining greater velocity.

Kaori had suggested that since all the younger girls (and Ranma, Kaori was cautious to explicitly say) were having a slumber party, that she and Yumiko should go out to a club. Yumiko was understandably nervous about the whole venture. She had been fine with presenting as a female in an academic environment where everyone kept to themselves, but the idea of going out on the town was another step.

 _Another step to what?_ The question echoed in Yumiko's mind.

…

Nabiki Tendou found herself getting too involved in the well-being of people she barely knew. While helping her erstwhile parent transition from being a broken alcoholic mess to a vibrant and happy woman of power and politics was a no-brainer to her; she didn't quite understand what was compelling her to encourage Ranma Saotome along the same path. Some of the things she'd pieced together from hearing conversations between Akane and Ranma as well as her mother and Genma was that Ranma had suffered immense trauma as a child, and Nabiki _felt_ for the young martial artist because of it.

Of course, such things did not preclude her from having a bit of fun at the boy's expense. Teasing him with a pink dress and for being a freeloader was all in good fun, she had thought; But Kasumi's hesitance in following along and her mother's cross response as a result had shown her that perhaps she was going about it the wrong way. And, in all fairness, her attitudes towards Ranma had shifted a bit since his arrival.

It was like coming across a puppy that someone had kicked for years. Even if you barely liked dogs, you'd still take it in and try your best to make it trust again. Nabiki supposed that was what her mother was doing in bringing four new people into the house. Her mother was nothing if not an optimist about helping people with their issues.

If Ranma _wanted_ to be something else, then she had no qualms against helping him figure things out. Maybe she could rub off a bit of her business sense and fashion sense off on someone–perhaps even she could bring Saotome in on some deals if he proved competent enough. She would refrain from the pink dress thing in the future, but that didn't mean she couldn't give Ranma small pushes in any given direction when it felt prudent; chaos was the law of life, and if Ranma couldn't handle _that_ then may the kami help him if things got even more crazy than they already were.

The idea that her parents had signed one of their futures off to marry some boy they'd never met was frustrating to Nabiki; and she couldn't help but feel a slight tinge of resentment towards her mother as a result.

The two adults had dashed the agreement into a sort of legal stasis, but if Ranma and Akane decided they weren't interested in each other for various reasons, then the burden would fall on her to fulfil some half-cocked family honour debt and Nabiki wasn't sure that she could do such a thing.

She _liked_ the young man; he was rough, but as sensitive and understanding as he could possibly be. She'd accepted for some time that she was incredibly bisexual, and so the idea of having someone who could easily thread the needle of sexual expression intrigued her. However, she still had her tastes.

And her tastes, unfortunately, did not include someone like Ranma. The boy lacked a certain submissive behaviour she'd come to expect in men she pursued. Even the boisterous and loud Tatewaki was very submissive and putty-like when she was around, even if he protested to high heavens that he wanted nothing to do with her or her female plumbing.

Putting that aside, Nabiki reasoned that tonight had to be a night where Ranma could finally slip out of his comfort zone. If she had to be the one who took point on such a thing, then she would certainly do so. Sleepovers weren't generally her thing, but she'd be caught in a damn lie if she said she didn't care about the future of the guests that had come to join her family.

Besides, she and Kasumi had a bet to keep up. With ¥5,000 on the line, Nabiki knew that she had to win. Ever since the pink dress thing had happened, Kasumi had been very firm in not believing for one moment that Ranma might be like her baby sister and mother. Nabiki of course, wasn't convinced in the slightest.

And when it comes to money, Nabiki Tendou never loses.

…

"I think tonight… I wanna tell them about me." Ranma said quietly to Akane as they changed their shoes at the end of the school day. Akane stopped what she was doing and gave a nervous glance at her friend.

"Are you sure, Ranma? It hasn't been the easiest thing for me since I came out to people. I'm still stuck going to school in a boy's uniform despite being out about it since junior high."

"Yeah, I'm sure. If these people are gonna be my friends, I can't lie to them about it like this. It wouldn't be fair to 'em."

Akane bit her lip before nodding. "Alright, if you're sure, Ranma. Besides, everyone who'll be showing up either already knows, or will support you as they supported me. You'll do wonderfully."

"I sure hope so," Ranma said with a sigh, resting his head on the locker. "I hope they're not too angry with me or think I'm a perv or nothin'."

"I don't see a reason why they would, Ranma. There's plenty of lesbians at Furinkan, and they get to change in the girl's room just like you do. There's no reason why you should be denied a space where you're comfortable because of some technicalities that nobody seemed care about until now. Do you _want_ to change with the boys?"

Ranma thought about it–and the idea of sharing a locker space with a bunch of guys did not invoke a palatable response. His face turned a slight shade of green, and Akane gently rubbed his shoulder.

"You don't have to say anything, Ranma. I understand completely," she said quietly, smiling at him.

…

Yumiko followed closely behind her girlfriend, heavily preoccupied with her feelings of vulnerability. Kaori had convinced her to go to the club that night fulfilling the sort of fantastic image that Yumiko had created for herself. A short black skirt, leggings, close-fitting jacket and top combo gave her a dangerous aura, which Kaori had described as 'punk domme'. Her sharp makeup and hair finished the rest of the illusion, much to Kaori's pleasure.

Not that the whole process of being made up to be praised and flirted with wasn't to _her_ pleasure as well. From the minute they'd both gotten home from work, Kaori had spent every moment since fussing over her to make her a proper date for the evening. Yumiko was surprised by how much she loved it; Kaori's smooth and warm hands gently performing ministrations on her hair to get it into peak condition for the evening, helping her put on her bra and her leggings, and gently guiding her in her heels over to the vanity. Yumiko had been super hesitant to approach cosmetics, as it represented some sort of forbidden zone. Sure, she had experience with them as an onnagata, but this was the first time she had done it _just because_. Despite her anxiety about casual makeup versus the intricate and heavy geisha kind she was accustomed to, Kaori had filled her full of that increasingly familiar fuzzy warmth.

She shivered a bit at the memory of Kaori gently guiding her through the process of putting on makeup. It reminded Yumiko immensely of the first time she had ever done _onnagata_ , shortly before her mother died. The look in Kaori's eyes and the look in her mother's eyes were so similar; as was the feeling of _rightness_ that Yumiko felt in her chest when she first glanced herself in the mirror.

She blinked, breaking from her thoughts and realized that she had drifted off completely; and that her girlfriend had struck up a conversation with another patron at the bar. Hobbling over as best as she could in her borrowed heels, Yumiko gripped the bar counter to balance herself and smiled as Kaori turned to face her.

"Yumiko-chan! I'd like to introduce you to someone. This is my friend Misaki; she and I were friends in college! Misaki-chan"—she turned to her other friend—"this is Yumiko, my girlfriend."

"Oh goodness! You finally got back into the game, Richan? That's fantastic!" Misaki said, smiling. She glanced up and down Yumiko, before she said to Kaori, with a smile, "And wow, she's gorgeous! Where ever did you find her?"

"Well, she and I have known each other for quite some time. She just got back into town, and well, a lot of unresolved things lead us back together," Kaori said, gently wrapping her arm around Yumiko's waist.

Yumiko blushed and said, "It's been very pleasant to have Kaori in my life again. I've missed her so dearly."

"Be careful, Kaori. With how your girlfriend looks, I'm sure she's gonna get hit on tonight. A lot."

"She's a big girl, she can handle it," Kaori said, gently rubbing Yumiko's waist. She asked, "Where are all the others?"

"Oh, you mean Emi and Megumi? If I know them, they're still at home, doing you know what. Ever since they got together, they've been total recluses. So… how about you two," Misaki said, "have you-"

"No, at least not yet, if my Yu-chan isn't comfortable, then I'll wait patiently until she feels she's ready," Kaori said with a smile.

Yumiko blushed again, a smile creeping into her face.

"Let's go claim a corner for ourselves, and get away from the bar. I don't wanna fall off the horse," Kaori proclaimed.

Misaki winked and said, "I'm gonna go to the payphone and call Emi-chan, and see if she's left yet or not. Be back in a flash, darlings!" She disappeared into the back of the bar, leaving Kaori and Yumiko alone.

Kaori gently grasped Yumiko's arm and lead her to an unoccupied table in the corner of the club. Yumiko followed dumbly, and accepted the offered seat. Adjusting her seating position and tugging on the bottom of her skirt to cover more of her legs, she let out a big sigh.

"Are you okay, honey? Is this too much? Do you want to go home?" Kaori asked, gently resting her hand on Yumiko's.

Yumiko took a deep breath. "No, it's okay. This is just something new. I think I'll be okay." She said with a slight smile.

"Hey, I'm gonna go get us something to drink, okay, Yumiko? Are you gonna be okay here on your own?" Kaori asked. Yumiko looked around at the scores of female patrons and gave a small nod and a smile.

Kaori rose and left to the bar, leaving Yumiko sitting at the table by herself.

…

Kaori waited for Fumiko to make her and Yumiko some virgin cocktails. She was firm on her stance towards alcohol at home, and Yumiko was still on a tight leash in that regard here. Memories of what an excess of cheap sake did burned brightly–she doubted the good quality liquor would treat her much better. Besides, liquor wasn't always a good thing to combine with estrogen.

She looked to see if Yumiko was doing alright, and while some part of her had expected it, she was still a little surprised to see a gaggle of women–some foreign, some not–standing around her, chatting her up. Yumiko's face was turning red and she looked like she was having a bit of trouble. Fumiko finished and set the drinks down on the counter. Kaori whisked the drinks off and headed back to the table.

Misaki had beaten her there, and was laughing while Yumiko had an expression on her face of mortification and pride. As she approached and set the drinks down, Misaki gave her a smile.

"You shouldn't leave your girlfriend unattended, Tendou. Look at all the phone numbers she got." Misaki gestured to the small pile of phone numbers sitting in front of Yumiko. Some written on napkins, receipts, and some were even business cards. Sorting through them, Kaori whistled.

"Holy shit, Yumiko, this is impressive," Kaori said quietly, and Yumiko fidgeted some more.

"I've never had so many women trying to hit on me in my entire life. For once I'm not going to them trying to flirt–they're coming to me and throwing themselves at me! Why?" Yumiko asked, looking at Kaori.

"You're a curvy, buxom, blue-eyed Japanese woman who's got the biggest domme lesbian look ever going on, and you're in one of Shinjuku's most well-known lesbian clubs?" Kaori offered, giggling. "Of course you're going to be hit on, Yumiko! You're not quite the person you used to be, you know."

Her comfort to Yumiko was interrupted with a female voice.

"Hey! Richan!"

Kaori grinned. "And now you're about to meet Emi and Megumi. Very nice girls, you'll like them."

She turned and waved her hand. "Emi! Megumi! Over here!"

Two women, maybe a little younger than Yumiko, made their way across the bar. One had long hair and was very wide and built like a bodybuilder, though she was still dressed very femininely, a black dress and heels. The other had short hair, slender build, and was wearing red and black flannel overshirt, a t-shirt for the band _Queen_ and jeans. The two seemed very happy, their hands clasped tightly together.

Yumiko blinked as memories from the past bubbled up–Emi was Emiko, one of her old girlfriends from back in the day. She wasn't surprised that her ex-girlfriend was a lesbian, but it was still something she awed at.

"This is Emiko." She gestured to the larger one. "She graduated the year after I did; and this is Megumi," she said with a gesture to the slender one. "She and I were in the same classes back in our university days."

"Girls, this is my girlfriend, Yumiko Saotome."

"Saotome? Any relation to _Genma_ Saotome?" Emiko asked, and Kaori glanced at Yumiko with a raised eyebrow.

"How do you know Genma Saotome, Emi-chan?" Kaori asked, glancing back at Emiko. She and Genma had known each other through the Master since they were kids, but other than that…?

"Well," she sighed and chuckled. "Genma and I were paramours for awhile. He was still young, fresh out of high school. He was performing at one of the local theatres as an _onnagata_ , and I… was smitten the first time I saw him. He was beautiful. Our relationship didn't last long; he met this one woman from Setagaya at a show. She was such a punk-ass and he fell for her, hook, line and sinker. Truth be told, I think our relationship was doomed from the start. He was _incredibly_ into you, Kaori."

"Me?" Kaori blinked. "Really?"

"Oh yeah, you came up in conversation a couple times and he just… the way he talked about you, I could tell. Have you heard from him recently?"

"Emiko…" Yumiko said quietly, "There's something I gotta tell you. _I'm_ Genma… or rather, I used to be."

"What?" Emiko said, surprise evident on her face. "I didn't think- no way!"

"You've got a tattoo on your left buttock. Atom doing a middle finger like Americans do. Got it on a drunken dare for 1,000 yen."

"God damn it _is_ you, Genma. Holy fuck, how did you turn into… _this_?!" Emiko asked, dumbfounded, her jaw slack in shock.

Yumiko laughed, much to the delight of her girlfriend. "It's a very long, very… frustrating story. But I'll tell it," she said, taking a sip of her drink.

…

Ranma was experiencing for the first time in his life the film known only as _Star Wars_. It was an antiquated LaserDisc release by the summer of 1987, but a film experience he had yet to consume. With everyone in the room being tremendous fans of the franchise (to the point of having dragged their respective parents to the theatres some four years prior to watch the opening night for _Return of the Jedi_ ), they had all wasted little time in press-ganging Ranma into watching the first episode of the Star Wars trilogy. He was enjoying himself immensely, with the action and thrills in following the young man from Tatooine being more than enough to keep him captivated and interested.

When the movie concluded, Ranma looked like he'd just gone through culture shock.

"What'd you think of the movie, Ranma?" Akane asked.

"That was _FUCKING EPIC!_ " Ranma nearly shouted at the end of his sentence, his face splitting wide with delight. His smile faltered a little and he said, "I've gotta tell them now, Akane."

"Alright, Ranma. I understand. Here." She rose to her feet and turned the lights on. "Girls? Ranma's got something to say."

Ranma suddenly had all the attention on him, and he gave a deep breath.

"Hey, everyone… I've got an admission to make. Um, as you all know, I have a curse–one that changes my sex with water. However, I haven't been completely honest about the curse. It's not a boy curse, it's a girl curse."

"A girl curse, so that means…" Rie said quietly, and Ranma nodded.

"It means I was born a boy," Ranma said, lowering his head. "I'm sorry. I… attend school as a girl because on the first day, I got splashed with water, and then I met all you nice people, and… I dunno, I just never considered it a problem. But I can't keep lying about it." He felt tears well up in his eyes, and wiped them away furiously.

"Do you think you might be like Akane?" Sayuri asked.

Ranma looked momentarily bewildered.

"Maybe?" Ranma said, trying to keep their tears from falling any further. "I'm not sure what I am, really. I've been a boy my whole life, but being a girl…" They trailed off, looking unsure.

"I guess, the question we should ask," Miki said, "is what colour do you want your nails, Saotome-san?"

"Huh?" Ranma asked, their face filled with surprise.

"I think what she means, Ranma," Yuka said with a slight smile on her face, "is that in the time you've been at Furinkan, you've given no indication your intentions are anything less than wholesome. We'll keep your secret and all of us will support you every step of the way."

"Y-you don't think I'm a freak, or a perv?" Ranma asked quietly, and Yuka started laughing.

"Ranma, of course not! Akane isn't perverted, and neither are you."

"Ranma, you should go get the stuff you got in Shinjuku," Sayuri said with a sly smile.

"W-What stuff?" Ranma said, their eyes widening in surprise.

"The cosmetics you bought. I saw you buying them."

"You bought makeup, Ranma?! Oh my goodness, show us!" Akane proclaimed in surprise, grinning ear to ear.

"I'd love to see what you bought, Saotome-san," Miki said, nodding in agreement with the other two girls.

Ranma blushed and disappeared upstairs. They returned moments later, carrying a small baggy. They pulled the items out and placed them on the table. Akane nodded and said, "Wow, Ranma, these are some good choices."

"The saleslady helped," they admitted quietly.

"Well, I'm still impressed," Akane said. She locked gazes with Ranma. "Is it okay if we make you look good?"

Ranma gulped, but nodded.

Akane grinned in response. "Okay girls, how are we gonna divvy this up?"

"I'll do her toes!" Miki said, bouncing onto her feet.

"I'll take care of her hands. Sis, you get makeup; Yuka, you get her hair; Rie and Sayuri, you two are in charge of clothing. Let's get going, ladies!" Akane said, raising her fist.

Within a few minutes, Ranma swore that they were in heaven. The idea of five girls treating them with such delicate care was something that _dreams were made of._ To make matters even better, Ranma was feeling finally… okay. They'd put up only token resistance when Sayuri and Rie had presented them with one of the chemises Ranma had bought on a whim from the shop– and now they were perhaps the most femininely dressed out of all the girls, but they were okay with that.

Nabiki was busy applying cosmetics to their face with a precise hand while Miki and Akane took care of their nails. Trimming, filing and painting–it was all a very relaxing experience. Yuka was busy at work on their hair, doing a tremendous job. Slowly, one by one, each girl finished her job, and stepped back. Yuka was the last one to finish, and with a clap, she grinned.

"All done! Wow, you look gorgeous, Ranma!"

Ranma opened their eyes and was presented with a mirror. The experience was a bit underwhelming in that it didn't look like a revolutionary change. Despite the cosmetics and the lipstick that Nabiki had procured for some reason, Ranma still looked like themself, just a bit more done up. The feeling in their chest surged, and they looked at the assembled girls.

"You… everyone. Thank you so much, this… feels really nice," they said, swishing the hem of the chemise. "I feel pretty."

"Well, you _are_ very pretty, Ranma, boy or girl. Even if we splashed you with hot water right now, you'd still be a pretty boy or a pretty girl. It's all relative." Akane said with a grin.

…

Yumiko Saotome and Kaori Tendou shared a look as they took in the sleeping pile of children in the living room. More specifically, they were taking in _one_ of those children. Ranma Saotome, wrapped protectively in the arms of Akane, wearing a black and floral print chemise, their hair done up in an unmistakably feminine manner. Yumiko didn't say anything, but simply stared at her child.

"It's been a long night, Yumiko," Kaori said, gently wrapping her arms around her girlfriend's waist. "How about you and I have a little private time?"

Yumiko smiled and said, "I think finally, honey… I'm ready. Let's go."

The minute the door to their bedroom closed, Kaori was on Yumiko like an animal in heat. Her hand had immediately gone straight to Yumiko's pussy, stroking her from underneath her skirt. Yumiko slid backwards and fell onto the bed. Kaori tugged her leggings down, pulling them loose and tossing them aside. Yumiko was laying on her back, the slick wetness of her crotch having seeped straight through the lace panties that Kaori had convinced her to wear.

"Someone's eager, huh?" Kaori said, her voice no louder than a whisper.

She leaned in and started stroking Yumiko through her panties, staring deep into the aqua blue eyes of her girlfriend. She could tell her methodical stroking was having an affect, as Yumiko was starting to fidget. Withdrawing temporarily from Yumiko's crotch, Kaori tugged the skirt down, yanking it off her girlfriend and discarding it. Yumiko sat up and pulled her hair around for Kaori to take her shirt off and unfasten her bra. Yumiko was now sitting on the bed in just her panties, looking expectantly at Kaori.

Kaori breathed in deep and said, "This'll be a little difficult for me, but here goes nothing." She gently unbuttoned her blouse, tossed it on the floor, unclipped the hook on her bra, and tossed it aside as well.

"You're the most beautiful girl I've ever seen," Yumiko breathed. Kaori's breasts were small buds, but they fit her perfectly. She felt a very strong urge to lick them, but refrained for the moment to allow Kaori to get comfortable with showing herself off like this. Kaori dropped her pants next, the jeans pooling around her feet and being discarded just as quickly. The only thing she was still wearing was a pair of cotton panties, through which Yumiko could see a slight bulge. Yumiko felt the pooling heat in her stomach get even stronger. She was pretty sure that if she was in her male form, she'd be sporting a pretty serious hard-on.

Kaori took another deep breath, and dropped her panties, fully exposing herself to Yumiko. It was fairly obvious that the time she had spent on hormone therapy had changed the way her genitals had functioned, but to Yumiko, it looked perfect.

"…this is one of the first times it's gotten up in years," Kaori admitted quietly, looking at her girlfriend with trepidation. "I think it likes you."

Yumiko blushed. She'd had her fancies in college, and had experimented with pegging once or twice with Emiko, but… this… was something else. She scooted closer to Kaori, gently taking her dick into her hands. It was… strange, she thought, to be on the other end of this. Resolved to experiment, she gently licked her girlfriend's dick. Kaori's breathing hitched and Yumiko went a little further, this time sucking on the tip a bit, soliciting another quiver from her girlfriend.

"Yumiko… y-you don't have to do this if you're not comfortable."

Yumiko popped her lips loudly as she released Kaori's dick, a long bit of saliva following her as she moved her mouth back. "Shut up, Richan," she said affectionately. "If I wasn't comfortable doing this, I wouldn't have already licked it and sucked on it. I've been thinking about this for quite some time, and I think that I'm ready to take that step, and put the past behind me." She once again took a mouthful of Kaori's dick, this time her all the way in. Slowly, Yumiko began to bob her head back and forth, using her tongue to keep pressure on that beautiful cock. She gradually sped up her pace, savouring the way Kaori took handfuls of her hair in her hands and the way when Kaori finally neared orgasm, her whole body was trembling, repeating Yumiko's name over and over again.

Kaori's warm come shot into Yumiko's mouth. Swallowing hard, Yumiko withdrew, leaving Kaori slick but flaccid once more. Wiping her mouth, she let out a sigh and said, "I liked that."

Kaori pulled her up and into a hug. "You did it like a champ, baby. Sorry for coming in your mouth."

"Nah, it wasn't gross or anything. It was like this kind of… syrupy feeling, slight aftertaste from the pineapple juice you had earlier."

Kaori gave her a little peck on the lips and said, "Now it's my turn. Lay back down."

Yumiko complied, pulling herself back fully onto the bed, and laying on her back. Kaori pulled Yumiko's panties all the way off, gently spread her legs and knelt between them. Yumiko knew she was already wet, already excited by Kaori's attentions, but as Kaori ran her fingers over her thighs, over the folds of her labia, and gently, teasingly, around her clit, Yumiko found herself writhing in need. "Kami-sama, Richan," she pled, "more, more!"

Kaori giggled, burying her face in Yumiko's vulva, now using her tongue to keep up the stimulus on Yumiko's lips and clit while she slowly eased first one finger, then a second, into Yumiko's cunt. The sensation filled her up and she nearly shrieked as she felt her orgasm hit her. She wrapped her legs around Kaori's back and came, her wetness covering her girlfriend's face. When she was released, still covered in her girlfriend's slick vaginal fluids, Kaori climbed up to eye level with Yumiko and kissed her deeply, fully using her tongue. After pulling away, she looked into Yumiko's deep blue eyes. "How did that feel?"

Yumiko looked into her girlfriend's loving eyes and knew there was only one thing she could say. "This whole experience has been mind-blowing. I love you, Kaori. I can say with certainty now that I want to be with you forever."

"Oh, Yumiko-chan. I love you too," Kaori said, laying herself down and cuddling her nude body up to her girlfriend's. Yumiko could honestly say she'd never felt this pleased and satisfied. Not in college, nor even in all the times she and Nodoka had sex did it ever feel this good.

As she lay there in a haze, she came to a realization that somehow felt as inevitable as the sunrise; it had been something she had been thinking about since she had been cursed, and since she had come back and found the love of her life.

The role of Yumiko had been created almost thirty years ago to serve as a stage persona. A fake identity to keep up the illusion of acting in scenes as an onnagata, and then later to serve as a public face for her curse at Furinkan.

But now, she realized that she was beginning to increasingly see herself as Yumiko, and as a woman, in private conditions. Even now, as she and Kaori had consummated their relationship, she hadn't thought of herself as Genma the entire time. Being Yumiko and making love to another woman _as a woman_ felt like she was expressing some universal truth, and she hadn't questioned it.

Either way, she didn't feel devalued as a person, taken advantage of, or anything like that. She felt pulsing happiness across her body in the afterglow of what she considered the best sex she'd ever had.

" _Perhaps,_ " Yumiko thought to herself, " _things have changed. Yumiko is no longer just an act, a pretend character I put on. She certainly feels real enough now… perhaps Genma has always been the persona? All the memories I have of the past, all the suffering–the only times I can remember being genuinely happy were when I presented myself as Yumiko._ "

She thought of Ranma calling her _mother_ , and saying she was a better parent than Genma had ever been. As much as it may have hurt given the circumstances of the past, it filled her with a hopeful optimism that she could make amends with her only child. Perhaps, if they were truly heading to the same destination, they could find a bond over that too.

" _But ultimately,_ " she considered, " _if Yumiko is the sum of my feelings, then does Genma still exist?_ "

Yumiko shook her head. " _Of course Genma is still part of me… but he is not the embodiment of who I am. He is the past, and he is that part of me that will always be there. Despite that, however, I am Yumiko, and I'm happy this way._ "

She looked at her sleeping girlfriend and felt a warmth in her chest. She realized that right now, in this moment, she wouldn't change a thing.


	9. Chapter 9

Ranma, their hair in waves around their shoulders, was still fighting back the shadows of sleep as they sat in seiza position across from their parent. Yumiko had thrown on a nightgown and the irony of their collective current appearances was not lost on either one.

"Y're pretty this mornin', Pops…" Ranma said, yawning.

"I could say the same, Ranma. I am guessing that you and I have something in common," Yumiko said, smiling slyly.

"I dunno yet," Ranma said, sighing. "I'm definitely havin' some thoughts. What about you?"

"I think I've mostly made up my mind– I'm happier than I have ever been in my life. This is why I think it's the right time for us to have a conversation about everything. Particularly your mother," Yumiko sighed, removing her glasses carefully and rubbing her eyes.

Yumiko tried to remain detached as she started to explain how the woman then named Kita Nodoka had come into her life and reshuffled it to her own designs. After all this time, Ranma deserved to know the truth.

Soon, though, as she told her child how Nodoka had isolated her from her college friends, driven her to question her own sense of ethics, and imposed a warped vision of how Ranma was to be raised, her voice grew choked with emotion. She held back tears as she told Ranma how she had been convinced to see nothing wrong in signing a suicide pact, of all things. "She's still alive, out there… and I've been lying to you this whole time about it," she finally admitted, and hung her head and began to cry heavy racking sobs.

For a few moments, Yumiko worried this would be too much for her child to forgive. But then, through her tears, she realized Ranma was scooting closer, closing the gap between them and embracing her in a hug.

"Pops," Ranma breathed quietly, "are you gonna be okay?"

Yumiko wiped tears from her eyes and sighed. "I've got a lot of problems, Ranma. Entire years of my life spent being told never to let emotion out, and to just suffer through it–your mother still haunts my nightmares at times, but I somehow have found a rock in Kaori. She… is my everything," she sniffed.

Ranma lowered their head and rested it on Yumiko's shoulder.

"Well, then I guess there ain't much more to say. You're my mom now, ain't ya?"

Yumiko let out a wry chuckle and wiped the tear away from her face. "How did you turn out so good, Ranma? Despite it all?"

"I couldn't tell ya, Mom. Akane and Ukyou both tell me it's 'cause of all the stuff I went through as a kid that I'm much more sympathetic to people's problems."

The hairs on her arms stood up at the use of the word. _Mom_. It was like a burst of instant sunshine right into her face, and Yumiko couldn't keep herself from giving a big smile in response.

"Well, regardless, I'm proud of you Ranma, no matter what you choose. Have you deci-"

"I don't know yet." Ranma interrupted her, and answered the unasked question.

Yumiko nodded and gave Ranma a kiss on the forehead.

"Well, whenever you figure that out, I'll be behind you," Yumiko said, rising to her feet. She walked towards the door of the Dojo before stopping and turning around. "Part of me is wondering if perhaps it's time to visit Obaasan and Jiji again, now that I don't feel so ashamed of myself."

"Your grandparents are still alive?" Ranma asked, and Yumiko gave her child a sharp look.

"I'm only 36, _child_. Though my childhood and teenage years are something for another day, a much different day. But Obaasan was always there for me when I started I performing _onnagata_ in theatre as a child." She gave a little laugh. "Now look at me. Still, I haven't seen them in… over twenty-five years. Ever since my father took me away to live with the Grandmaster." She shivered. "The only good thing that came from _that_ was Kaori. But, yes, I hope they're still alive. I hope… I hope they'll understand."

Ranma nodded quietly and watched as their _mother_ left the room.

…

Ranma had some ideas formulating in the back of their head. They knew they weren't the wisest of their peers, but they were still very clever and could work quickly on their toes. The early morning sun was still beginning to appear over the horizon, but Ranma was already quickly coming up with some ideas on what they could do.

The first stop was Kaori. Yumiko had gone off to bathe, giving Ranma ample time to ask Kaori some questions.

Hearing a soft knock on the door, Kaori swung it open to see Ranma standing in the doorway with a shy smile.

"What can I do for you, Ranma?"

"I was wonderin' if you could tell me a bit about my great-grandparents. Ma mentioned 'em when we were havin' our conversation, but didn't say much about them."

"I can't say I know an awful lot about them–other than they're rather famous thespians down in Osaka. They used to be known for traveling Japan, but they've likely long since retired by now."

"Osaka? Like Ucchan?"

"It's very likely the reason Yumiko went to Osaka for so long was that she wanted to go to her grandparents, but never… actually did it."

She shook her head and gently patted Ranma's head. "You're a good child for doing this, you know. It's a very sweet thing to do."

Ranma smiled at the praise and quickly bounced off to go find Ucchan. They found the boy hard at work on breakfast. As Ranma entered the room, they gave Ranma a wink and said, "Breakfast is covered, don't worry. You're making dinner right?"

"Fireball curry! Yeah! Absolutely! I actually came here to ask ya a question. You're from Osaka, I was wonderin' if you knew anythin' about my great-grandparents. Apparently they're rather famous down there."

"The Saotome family is quite famous, yes. I was never personally into the theatre, but my father was quite star-struck when he met your Dad. Apparently when your old man was a kid, he was famous as an onnagata or somethin' like that." He looked at his friend. "Why d'ya ask?"

"Well, _Kaasan_ ," Ranma said, emphasizing their parent's expressed identity, "is feeling really down on herself, and misses her grandparents, and I wanted to see if they were around still to get them back together."

"They've been retired for quite some time, but last time I was in Osaka, they were still around. I'd suggest trying to get an operator's assistance, or looking in a phone book."

Ranma once again bounced out of the room and to the NTT telephone nestled on a small end table. Picking up the receiver, Ranma looked at the notepad by the phone which had essential numbers listed–the three digit number for an operator was very simple. Punching _100_ in, Ranma waited while the phone buzzed before a female voice came on the line.

"Operator assistance, how can I direct your call?"

"Good morning, I was wondering if you could look up the last name Saotome in Osaka, please."

"First name?"

"I don't have one to give you, unfortunately."

The woman was silent for a few moments before she came back and said, "Ma'am, I have approximately 20 telephone numbers with Saotome listed in the Osaka Prefecture. Any further ways for me to narrow it down?"

"Sorry, I guess not. Thanks anyway."

"My pleasure. Have a good day." The line went dead, and Ranma placed the phone back in its cradle. They knew it wasn't going to be _that easy_ , but it didn't hurt to try; 20 different telephone numbers in Osaka with the last name 'Saotome' attached to them indicated that their family was sizable enough to make it more difficult to find two retirees in the metropole that was Osaka.

Sighing to themself, they realized they would need to come up with a different strategy. As they passed back through the living room, they could hear the muffled strains of music playing from their mother's bedroom. The band in question was singing in English, and so Ranma couldn't make out anything of what was playing, other than the dramatic rhythm and beat.

A trickling sense of frustration seeped into their psyche, and they grumbled to themselves. They headed upstairs to their bedroom and started looking through their closet for things to wear for the day.

The door opened behind them and Akane meandered in and walked over to her nightstand. She popped her estrogen dose for the day and stretched, turning to face Ranma.

"Good morning, how long have you been up?"

"Eh, me and Ma needed to have a conversation, so I've been up awhile. Anybody else up yet?" Ranma asked.

"Probably Nabiki; she, Miki and Rie have classes this morning," she said, walking over to where Ranma was standing.

Ranma said, "Thinking about what to wear today. I don't really have plans, I might just take the day off for once."

"I think we deserve it," Akane said with a quiet nod. She gestured to her vanity table, "Why don't I take your makeup off before we clean up? If you'd like I can reapply it when we're done."

Ranma looked at the vanity and back at Akane and nodded. "Alright, but I'm keepin' the nail polish," they said with a sly smile.

"That won't come off until you use nail polish remover, Ranma. You'll be okay," Akane said, giggling.

"Good," Ranma said as they grinned and sat down at the vanity.

…

Sleep let go of Yuka very gracefully, a nice change from the usual. Opening her eyes, she took in her environment and realized she was pretty thoroughly pinned. Sayuri was snoring into her neck and her right arm was draped over Yuka, resting on top of Yuka's breast. As Yuka tried to turn her head, Sayuri wiggled even closer to her, murmured something, and gave a gentle squeeze.

Yuka blushed and wiggled herself and her breast free, and managed to detach herself from Sayuri.

Looking at the girl, she gently nudged her and said, "Hey, grabby hands. Get up."

Sayuri's eyes opened and she looked at her friend. "Good morning," she said as she stretched. "This was really nice. Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah, I guess… until I woke up to a certain someone grabbing my breasts." Yuka glared at her friend and Sayuri blinked in surprise.

"…that wasn't a dream? Oh my god, Yuka, I'm so sorry I didn't mean to!"

"I didn't say it was a bad thing, Sayuri," Yuka said, lowering herself onto the shared sleeping bag. She gently took her friend's hands in hers and said, "I know you'd never do anything to take advantage of me; we're best friends, aren't we?"

"Yeah, but still," Sayuri said quietly, rubbing the back of her neck. "Would it help if I let you touch mine?"

"Seriously?" Yuka asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, it's only fair, I violated your personal space and grabbed yours, so it's only fair I let you do that to me. Just… not too hard, please," Sayuri said quietly.

Yuka reached a hand out and squished Sayuri's breast, giving it a gentle squeeze. Sayuri let out a small, stifled moan and clapped her hands over her mouth, mortified. Her eyes had become incredibly wide. Yuka withdrew her hand quickly, and the two looked at each other intently.

"I swear I didn't mean to do that," Sayuri squeaked out. She looked at the other sleeping girls in the room. The other three girls were still sleeping, the slight foreplay between Sayuri and Yuka having gone completely over their heads.

"Sayuri, unless I'm completely crazy, there's clearly something to this and I'm totally cool with it if you are," Yuka admitted quietly, gently taking Sayuri's hand in her own.

"Yuka…" Sayuri whispered, her blush deepening. "I don't know if I'm quite ready for that. I mean, you're not wrong–there _is_ something there, but I'm just not sure what it is yet."

"Well, there's really no rush," Yuka said, pulling her hand back and resting it in her own lap. "I'd like for us to be happy with the decision we make, and not have any regrets, you know?"

"Agreed," Sayuri said with a smile.

…

Tatewaki walked quietly down the streets of Nerima. Gone for the moment was his training ensemble; for now he was wearing a finely made yukata, the most respectful attire he could assemble to honor the graceful maiden of his heart; the apple of his eye, the changeling from China. He smoothed the yukata out and inspected the bouquet of orchids he was carrying. Everything was _perfect_.

He approached the Tendou Dojo and fear crept into his chest. What if the pigtailed one rejected him yet again?

He shook his head. Such thoughts were _plebeian_ at best. He knew such things were a possibility, but when she witnessed his debonair charm, she would be driven straight into his arms!

Passing under the wooden archway that marked the edge of the Tendou property, he walked up the cobblestone path to the front door. Ringing the bell, he stepped back and smoothed his hair. After a few moments, he heard a familiar voice shout, "I got it, Akane!"

The door opened, and Tatewaki's heart nearly stopped. There she was, as radiant as the sun. Her ruby lips quirked momentarily before she let out a frustrated sigh.

"What do you want, Upperclassman?" she said, frowning and folding her arms across her currently flat chest. Tatewaki's own lips slightly twitched.

"I came to give you this, fair maiden." He offered the bouquet of orchids to the target of his affections.

"Orchids?" she asked quietly, before raising an eyebrow at him. "How'd you know I like orchids?"

"Simply a man's intuition, fair beauty of the land. I come here to ask you out to dinner tomorrow night. One date is all I ask of you."

She took a deep breath and folded her hands behind her back. A thoughtful look was on her face and she nodded.

"Alright, buddy. I'll give ya a shot. But this is no commitment, one time only. Fair?" she said, pointing at him.

"Of course, fair maiden!" he said, bowing deeply in thankfulness.

"Stop callin' me that. My name's Ranma, alright?"

"Okay, Ranma." Tatewaki bowed, holding back tears of happiness. "I will be here to pick you up at 8 tomorrow evening. Please wear something… formal, if you have it. If not, my sister can provide you with something," he said with a smile. "Until then, au revioir."

He sprinted off, away from her. Tears of happiness started streaming down his face.

Finally! Tatewaki Kuno _had a date!_

…

The door closed, and Ranma quietly carried the orchids into the living room. Akane looked up from her magazine and said, "Ranma, where'd you get the bouquet?"

"Tatewaki stopped by and… gave them to me. He asked me out on a date tomorrow night."

"Oh?" Akane asked, blinking in surprise. "That's the most forward he's ever been. With me he just kept sending me really bad poetry at random times, proclaiming his love… he never _actually_ got the courage to ask me out."

"I said yes," Ranma said, half to themselves, as they placed it in a nearby empty vase.

"WHAT?!" Akane shrieked. "Why did you say yes to Tatewaki of all people?"

"Well, I mean, it was kind of a spur the moment sorta thing? I'm just tryin' it out to see how I like it. I've never dated anybody before, so… I dunno. Maybe I'll like it? Akane, this doesn't change anything between us, you know that. This is just somethin' I've gotta get out of my system."

"Well," Akane said, a deep frown unmoving from her face. "Hope you have a good time, then, Ranma."

She curled her magazine up tightly in her hand and stalked upstairs, radiating her soured mood.

"I'll sort things out with her," Ranma said, rubbing their forehead. "I'm not tryin' to start anything–this is just somethin' I've gotta look into before I'm sure about stuff. I'm pretty sure I know the answer."

"If you're going to pick a man to date," Sayuri said, shaking her head. "Why not pick a man like Ukyou? At least he's a gentleman, unlike Tatewaki who is… probably the creepiest guy at Furinkan."

"Well, Tatewaki asked first. 'sides, Akane and I ain't even dating. She's never asked me out or nothin'. We're just sleepin' in the same bed, is all."

"Yeah," Yuka said, "but she's clearly carrying a torch for you, Saotome."

"I guess," Ranma said quietly.

Yuka rose from her seated position and said, "I'll talk to her, see if we can get this smoothed out. You're entitled to your own space to experiment, Ranma. Just… please be mindful of other people's feelings in the future, would you?"

Ranma nodded, and Yuka dashed upstairs after Akane.

…

Atsuko quietly pulled on her gloves and picked up the water can sitting on the nearby bench and began to tend to her garden. She and Hiro were proud of the garden they'd cultivated since their mutual retirement. While Hiro enthusiastically enrolled them in competitions, Atsuko simply enjoyed the tranquility that an experience such as gardening provided.

In all honesty, focusing on the garden was difficult. Memories of her poor daughter and grandson who had perished in the typhoon were constantly lingering in her mind, and when she had been a performer it had made her life difficult, but now, it was a festering cyst, laying deep beneath her preoccupations.

Deep regret welled up at the very thought of little Genma. He had been such a bright and energetic young boy, but she and Hiro had been stupid enough to turn a blind eye to his dishonourable father. A _war criminal_ , regardless of intentions or patriotic pride, was still a war criminal; no more to be trusted with an innocent child than with a kettle of boiling water.

"Atsuko, where are you?"

Atsuko smiled to herself. Hiro was just as much the radiant sun in her life as he had been the first day they'd met. The heir to generations of fine palatial theatre, she had found him and the world he lived in to be an unbelievable fantasy; and it was his companionship that had made the loss of daughter and grandson tolerable.

Not that she didn't love her second child– he was doing the family proud as the patriarch of the troupe, and both Atsuko and Hiro had felt confident in leaving things in his very capable hands. But even then, it was hard to attend shows without memories of Koharu and Genma bubbling to the very top.

She turned to see Hiro standing in the doorway of the greenhouse, his hands folded in front of him. He gave her a smile and said, "Masahiro just dropped by. Apparently, he and the troupe are going to be in Tokyo next week to celebrate the troupe's 150th anniversary; he gave us VIP tickets to it."

"Tokyo? I thought they were planning for Kyoto?" Atsuko asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Unfortunately, not. Scheduling conflict." Hiro frowned before shrugging.

"Well, Tokyo isn't so bad. Could be worse, he could be performing for some Americans in Okinawa."

"He's quite fortunate, having avoided such a thing," Hiro said with a dry chuckle, shaking his head.

Atsuko smiled, "I wonder who'll be in attendance. One hundred and fifty years is a long time for one family to be keeping up such an honoured tradition."

"Well, he's told me there was some interest from the Prime Minister's office, along with some Liberal Democratic representatives, but he said nothing was set in stone yet," Hiro said, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

"What venue did they get?" Atsuko asked, perking up.

"Nothing in the city core, but apparently they're doing it at a theatre in Furinkan, some neighbourhood in the Nerima ward. Apparently the theatre they're doing it at is opening for the first time, and they wanted to do something special, so…" Hiro trailed off, shrugging again.

"Well, I certainly hope it's a performance to stun and wow the masses,"Atsuko said, moving down to trim one of her plants.

…

Kaori placed the telephone back in its cradle and paced around the living room quietly for a minute. She crossed the room and stepped out into the koi garden where her girlfriend was performing a balancing kata.

"Yuchan?" Kaori asked quietly, gaining the attention of the aforementioned martial artist. Returning to a starting stance, Yumiko turned on her heel and looked at her girlfriend with a smile.

"Hey, Richan. Who was that on the phone?"

"One of my colleagues on the municipal council. Apparently the Party is gathering some representatives from the ward for the opening of the new theatre. and since I live in the same neighbourhood as the theatre proper, they wanted me and my family to attend the opening night."

"Sounds fun, who is performing?" Yumiko asked.

"It's… the Kikugumi Kagekidan," Kaori said quietly, and Yumiko's face turned ashen.

"Really?" Yumiko said weakly, and Kaori nodded.

"Seems it's their 150th anniversary as a troupe, and so they were invited to be the first performance at the theatre. Seems the owner was a big fan when he was a kid."

"And they want your whole family to attend?"

"Yeah, they gave me six tickets; unfortunately Ukyou and Konatsu will have to hold down the fort, but I trust them to not throw wild parties while we're gone. You said your grandparents retired, so they won't be in attendance I think."

"Even if they aren't, my uncle is still the patriarch of the troupe."

"Oh, well, hopefully they won't recognize you, you aren't exactly the spitting image of a man of similar age, my love," Kaori said, gesturing to her girlfriend's impressive dimensions.

"Yes, but you forget that I performed _onnagata_ , dear. I looked like a younger version of the woman I am now, not a very far leap in logic to make connections," Yumiko said with a snort.

"Well, Emichan wasn't able to figure out it was you that easily–maybe your family won't either. I'd really like for you to come with me, but if you're that uncomfortable you don't have to."

"No, I'd like to. It'll be nice to reminisce about life before the Grandmaster," Yumiko said with a sigh, taking her glasses off and rubbing the bridge of her nose.

"I'll be there next to you the whole time for emotional support, my love," Kaori said, wrapping her arms around Yumiko and kissing her gently. Yumiko blushed and allowed herself to be bear hugged by her girlfriend.

…

Yuka popped the door to Akane's bedroom and the sound of a girl crying into a pillow hit her ears. Frowning, Yuka slipped through the door and closed it behind her.

"Akane? Do you wanna talk about it?" Yuka asked.

A pillow slapped against the wall next to her, causing Yuka to jump in surprise. Akane was obviously upset, and would require fine maneuvering to avoid inciting her anger. Moving a little closer, Yuka said, "Please talk to me, Akane. Tell me what's wrong."

"Isn't it obvious?!" Akane mumbled into her pillow, before lifting her head and glaring at Yuka, tears welling in her eyes. "Ranma would rather date Tatewaki than just ask me out himself!"

"Ranma is just trying to get some experimentation out of his system. He has no idea what it means to be himself and he's getting a chance to figure out what his own parameters of comfort are. It's very likely Ranma _won't_ enjoy the presence of Tatewaki any more than you do. Yes, it was insensitive of Ranma to do that, but he's a pretty oblivious boy sometimes," Yuka sighed, gently rubbing Akane's back.

"I doubt Ranma will ever want to be with someone like me, a freak," Akane mumbled again, angrily dropping back into her pillow.

"Pardon my language, but fuck that. You're not a _freak_ , Akane. If there's anybody in the world who would care about the specifics of what you're doing to achieve harmony between your mind and body, it'd be Ranma Saotome. You know Ranma values you as a friend, and you can't deny that he's been reciprocating your flirting too."

"Well…" Akane said, sighing.

"It's just experimentation, Akane. He'll come back around to you. If you want to date him, just _ask him_."

"I'm not entirely sure I like guys, to be honest," Akane sighed into her pillow once again. Flipping over onto her back, she folded her hands behind her head and said, "I don't even know how to categorize Ranma. It's hard to see him as a boy, but I don't want to call him a girl unless he declares that's what he wants to be."

"He's somewhere in-between. He may stay there, or move to one side. We'll see as he blossoms. All we can do, Akane, is give him the space he needs to become his true self. It's not rocket science. You know what he needs, more than a girlfriend? A _best_ friend. Be that for him, and I guarantee you'll never have to worry about him walking away from you."

"Where'd you learn all this stuff, Yuka?" Akane asked, glancing at her friend.

Yuka shrugged. "You read a lot of novels, and watch a lot of films, you can get a grip on some of the concepts."

Akane laughed. "You're great, Yuka. Never change."

…

That evening, there was a solemn silence across the dining room table in the Tendou household as everyone anticipated Ranma's creation. The air was thick with the smell of spice, peppers and other _hot_ foods. Ranma poked their head out of the kitchen curtain and smiled.

"Um, is anybody gonna back out? I have some backup curry ready if any of you don't want to try stomaching it," they said apologetically. Everyone looked at each other and there was a collective shaking of heads.

"No dice, old friend," Ukyou said, grinning madly. "We've been taking wagers to see who chickens out first. Wanna join?"

"It would be no fair for the chef to say anything. But," Ranma snorted, "I'll say that I think that most of you will be in for a rude awakening." A sly smile spread across their face, as if they were satisfied by the fact that what was to come was unknown to their family.

Murmuring spread across the room and Ranma disappeared back into the kitchen, still maintaining the same smile.

Dinner was served, and Ranma watched with amusement as each member of the family dealt with the spice in their own way. Glasses of water went untouched as everyone seemed to be in on the dare as to who could go the longest without. Even Kasumi was participating, keeping a serene smile on her face–even if she was stiff as a board and her eyes were watering.

One by one, each member of the family threw up the white flag–starting with Konatsu, then proceeding to Kasumi, Nabiki and Akane. Ukyou's face had turned red and he looked deeply uncomfortable. Kaori was there with him sweating profusely, and Yumiko looked largely undisturbed, but she seemed a bit _strained_.

Ranma, on the other hand, was so accustomed to the high powered spice of their own creation that they were enthusiastically eating, paying little attention to the heat. Ultimately, the last person standing was Kaori. Ranma blinked in surprise and grinned.

"I had placed my personal wager onto Ma, 'cause she's had it before, but you winnin' is just as interesting."

Kaori winked at Ranma and said, "I've had my fair share of spicy foods before, child. My late wife was huge into foreign spices. Nobody could stomach them but me."

"Ah," Ranma said, chuckling. "Well, despite the heat, I hope you all like it."

"It's delicious, Ranma," Akane said, "but it's like caustic acid."

"You've gotta have the stomach of iron to eat it, yeah. I could tone it down some."

"An excess of spice doesn't make up for flavour, Ranma," Ukyou recited like a sensei teaching their student, and Ranma bowed their head.

"But that doesn't mean it wasn't great, Ranchan," Ukyou said, pointing his spoon at Ranma as if to make a point.

Ranma grinned back at the elder martial artist and gave him a thumbs up.

…

The following day was a blur of activity as Ranma prepared themself for their date with Tatewaki. For Ranma's part, they were a little uncertain about the whole concept, particularly since it had made Akane a little off-put all day about it.

Tatewaki smoothed his hair down and rang the bell for the Tendou Dojo. He hadn't slept very well in the previous night, and had stress-vomited a couple times that day, but he was ready for his date with Ranma Saotome. Steeling his nerves, he reassured himself of his prowess with the ladies.

The door opened, and Ranma's stern mother, Yumiko, appeared in the doorway. Tatewaki was scared of Yumiko-sensei, particularly where her standards of quality for kendo artists was concerned. He bowed nervously.

"Yumiko-sensei, I am here to take your daughter out to dinner," he said in the best respectful tone he could muster.

"Please enter; my daughter will be with you shortly," Yumiko commanded firmly, gesturing inside. Tatewaki felt a shiver up his spine and nodded. Stepping into the door, Yumiko lead him to the family room.

Tatewaki quietly cleared his throat and checked the bouquet of orchids in his hand. Everything was absolutely perfect… he just needed to survive this encounter with the fearsome physical education coach.

"Tatewaki," Yumiko said, "I could give you the standard speech parents give the prospective partners of their children, but my Ranma is more than capable of fending for herself. But I should think I don't have to explain things to you, do I?"

Tatewaki got the meaning between the lines, and nodded aggressively. "Absolutely ma'am, no problem ma'am–we'll have a very nice time."

"I'm sure we will," a slightly amused female voice said. Tatewaki turned to see Ranma Saotome standing in the doorway wearing a red dress. Tatewaki felt his heart nearly exit his body in shock, and Ranma looked up at him.

"Hey Kuno. Ya clean up nice. Ya bring those for me?"

"Yes! I know I gave you one already, but a woman deserves an infinite number of them. Besides, I find orchids the most fitting flower to present to you, considering your name."

"The kanji of my name ain't got orchid in it, bub," Ranma said, snatching the orchids out of Tatewaki's hand. "But they are my favourite flower. So you get a pass on that one."

Tatewaki let out a sigh of relief, and Ranma bopped him on the shoulder.

"Relax, butthead. We're gonna have a good time. I ain't gonna start beatin' on ya unless you do somethin' stupid or fresh. Just relax," Ranma said with an amused smirk.

…

Ranma whistled in surprise.

"Swanky lookin' place, Kuno."

"One of the finest gourmet restaurants in Japan. Only the finest for you," Tatewaki said, wiping his forehead free of sweat with his handkerchief. Helping his date into her seat, Tatewaki sat across from Ranma and glanced at the menu.

"So, how'd ya get into kendo, Tatewaki?"

Tatewaki blinked in surprise. "Oh… erm… well, I was very into fencing as a child, it was part of the core curriculum of the private academy I went to when I was a child… as I got older, I found the European sport quite boring. I found kendo an acceptable alternative."

Ranma nodded. "I've met a few kendo masters in my time, a rather respectable sport, I'd say."

"Certainly, what most people don't realize is that kendo is more than just a martial art. It is a system of discipline that emphasizes the tradition of the blade. In my opinion, one of the finest martial arts to have ever existed," Tatewaki said.

They ordered their meals, nothing too over the top, and quietly shared an evening of conversation. As far as "earth-shattering" events went, it was underwhelming. Tatewaki maintained a respectful attitude and healthy interest in Ranma's background, and vice versa. Nobody grated on each other or had foot-in-mouth syndrome.

It was a miracle, if one believed in such things.

At the end of the night, Ranma and Tatewaki returned to the door of the Tendou house. There was a moment of awkward silence before Ranma leaned in and gave Tatewaki a peck on the cheek.

"That's for bein' a decent guy tonight. If ya act like that more often, we can be friends. But I don't think bein' in a relationship'll work."

Tatewaki nodded.

"Ranma Saotome, you're a very beautiful woman. Like the radiant stars above us," he said grandly as he gestured to the sky, "but I must admit that… I can't see you much in the way of a potential partner. I'd much rather be friends."

"Then we're agreed, Tatewaki."

"Indeed."

"I'll see ya on Monday, okay?" Ranma said with a grin.

"Most certainly. See you later, Ranma."

Tatewaki turned on heel and left the Tendou Dojo, leaving Ranma standing alone at the front door. The door opened, and Akane leaned out.

"Got it out of your system, Ranma?"

Ranma shrugged, before facing Akane.

"I mean, now I'm pretty sure I ain't interested in datin' guys, but that wasn't so bad. He was very polite and conversational, and wasn't a total creep about stuff. He probably needs more work before I'd call him a friend, but…"

Akane nodded. "He's always been very nice to me when all the guys attacked me for being trans. But yeah, I wouldn't call him a friend yet," she said, glancing up at the _ranma_ above the door as if it could offer her the answers she sought to all the stupid things in the universe.

"Yeah," Ranma said with a tired sigh. "Is the furo free? I could use a hot bath."

"Yeah, I think so," Akane replied.

Ranma nodded and walked past Akane to head upstairs to grab their bath kit.

"Mind if I join you?" she asked as she closed the door behind them.


	10. Chapter 10

" _Our position is extremely perilous; if we do not earnestly promote nationalism and weld our peoples into a strong nation, we face a tragedy–the loss of our country and the destruction of our race. To ward this danger off, we must espouse nationalism and employ the national spirit to save the country._ "

Shampoo considered these words nearly every day. The twenty-one year old heiress to the eldership of the Nujiezu tribe had grown up in a world in which the Communist Party of China flanked their society on every side, nestled deep in the heart of the Kensei Valley. Shampoo had been brought up by her great-grandmother in the mould of Sun Yat-sen's _Three Principles of the People_ , which Great-Grandmother had considered to be the best policy to modernize the Nujiezu.

However, the Communist Party's brief period of liberalization and tolerance of things heterodox seemed to be coming to a steady decline and an inevitable end, and so their control over the valley was increasingly tenuous.

Things, however, seemed to fit to change during the annual festival season. Shampoo had entered, as was expected for the heiress, and had defeated all of her opponents in physical combat, being once more declared the finest warrior in the tribe. However, her victory prize had been devoured by two outsiders–no doubt Jusenkyō victims.

The arrest of the two outsider women was swift, but justice was a delayed measure. The Elder's typically unforgiving attitudes towards outsiders lessened after questioning the young girl about her circumstances. Shampoo knew very little about the proceedings, but having seen the girl accompanying the Elder, she could tell that perhaps her grudge had been a little harsh. Emaciated, haunted and shy; the girl seemed to be devoid of happiness.

After the Elder interrogated the two outsiders, who had turned out to be father and child, she determined the father would be punished for his cowardice in refusing to defend his honour. The father had loudly proclaimed his opinions about the value of women, so as a fitting punishment, the Elder chose to lock him in his Nyannichuan form before escorting him and his child out of the valley and back into the Maoist lands. This done, she summoned Shampoo to give her a new assignment.

She was to follow the girl back to their home land of Japan. She was not to engage them in combat; she was to observe and gather information. The look in her Great-Grandmother's eye gave her some indication as to her intent; curiosity, concern, and perhaps a little bit of opportunism.

It pained Shampoo to leave her village, but duty came before personal feelings. Saying goodbye to her friends, comrades in arms, and avoiding her annoying frenemy Mousse, she set off for Japan on her mission.

Arriving in Tokyo, she didn't know where to begin. She supposed the first stop to take was one of the _koban_.

The officer had very little for her to go on– public directory listings for _Saotome_ were devoid of any mention of that surname, other than a listing for a woman named _Nodoka_ who lived in a neighborhood named _Yōga_. Acquiring a map from the same officer, she decided to go on her first intelligence gathering. Maybe this Nodoka woman could lead her to Ranma Saotome.

A short train ride later, Shampoo was walking down the street in the reasonably dense Yōga. Looking around, she stopped a pedestrian as they passed by.

"Excuse me, do you know where I find Nodoka Saotome?"

"She lives right down the road there, but be warned, she's a bit crazy." The young woman said, gesturing to one of the sizable houses nearby.

"How so?" Shampoo asked, eyeing the house with interest.

"She's one of those right-winger types. Supports State Shinto and _hakkou ichiu_ , believes that His Majesty betrayed the Japanese nation by not taking his life at the end of the war, that war crimes weren't a thing, so on and so forth."

Shampoo's face darkened a bit. Even if her tribe barely tolerated Beijing, members of her tribe had served with distinction in joint service with the Kuomintang and Communist forces during the War of Japanese Aggression.

"I see," she finally said, bowing to the woman. "I thank you for your cooperation."

"No problem," the woman said, casting an eye back to the building. "But like I said, be careful. She had a son and husband but nobody's seen 'em for 12 years."

"Twelve years?" Shampoo asked, frowning.

"Yeah, some say she killed the two."

"No, not possible– I fight Ranma Saotome in China. Big fight. They come back here to Tokyo. I look for them here."

"I see," The salaryman said. He shrugged and said, "There's some government offices that could help you… but you'd have to go to one of the more… _flexible_ wards. Nerima's not a bad place to start."

"Nerima? Where is this?"

"Just north of here, past Suginami. They're a little loose with regulations, it's sort of an open secret. They'll help you."

"Thank you." She bowed swiftly, and with a single leap, bounded over the roof of the small shop they stood in front of.

…

Municipal councils played the role of government guardians, helping administer individual neighborhoods and wards across Tokyo. As a member of the Nerima council, Kaori had an important role of hearing grievances, proposing ideas, debating those ideas, and voting on them with the council to decide the best method to move forward.

As she looked through a recent proposal to renovate one of the older streets in Furinkan, a knock came on her office door.

"Come in," she said, chewing on a pen cap.

The door opened, and Kaori looked up. "Ah, yes, can I help you, Hiromi?" she said, looking at her aide.

The young aide bowed and said, "Tendou-san, there's some documents here for you about the theatre opening. It's a guest list, along with some notes."

"Wonderful, thank you," she said with a smile, taking the envelope from Hiromi.

As Kaori opened the envelope, she perused the contents.

There were some biographical pieces on some of the people of the troupe, an itinerary of their performance for the night, along with some notes about who would be "guests" of honor.

Along with the Governor of Tokyo, Shunichi Suzuki and family; there would be her and guests, along with some other low-rung LDP functionaries. As she looked at the guest list, annoyance crept into her chest thinking about the fact that her love had been long denied the right to be part of her own family.

Her thoughts were interrupted by her phone ringing. Picking up the receiver, she pressed it to her ear and spoke. "Hello, this is Kaori Tendou. Yes. I see. Well- okay. Not a problem, I guess. I have those accesses. Fine, goodbye."

"Hiromi!" She shouted out of her door, and the young girl appeared in the doorway.

"Yes, ma'am?" Hiromi asked, standing primly and respectfully.

"We're going to have someone dropping by. They say she's got indigo hair and doesn't speak stellar Japanese. You'll know her when you see her. When she arrives, have her escorted to me directly."

A few minutes later, there came a knock on the door. Opening it revealed the indigo-haired inquirer and her aide. The visitor stepped into the door, and her aide closed the door behind her.

"Please, take a seat. Can I get you some tea or something?" She asked, and the woman shook her head, declining the offer.

"My name is Kaori Tendou. What is yours?" Kaori said, smiling at the woman.

"Shampoo, of the Nujiezu tribe."

"Wonderful," Kaori said. "Now, I understand you're in the market for some information. I can endeavor to help you to the best of my ability."

"Shampoo has been told you can give information regarding Ranma Saotome."

…

Shampoo's well-trained eye caught only the slightest twitch in the Tendou woman's face, before she settled back into her serene diplomatic stance. She knew then that she was dealing with someone well-trained in the arts of diplomacy and intrigue.

" _I should tread lightly… this is dangerous territory,_ " Shampoo thought to herself.

"May I ask why you're seeking information on this person?" The woman said, her voice barely above a whisper, eyes unmoving from Shampoo's.

"Is manner of honor to self and tribe… and is my mission." Shampoo replied smoothly, feeling uncertain at the woman's neutral expression as she considered her words carefully.

"I understand such a concept. It is very fortunate that I do know to whom you are referring to, but I warn you of the consequences should you try to inflict bodily harm-"

"No," Shampoo said hastily, drawing herself up. "No intent to kill."

The woman seemed to relax only slightly before nodding. "I have been told the story, you know… how you have been hunting Ranma across China."

"It is only a smokescreen. Allow Shampoo to explain," Shampoo said with a deep breath, before beginning the story. She described how initially, the expectation was for the outsider to be killed or at the very least exiled with the intent of hunting her down and fulfilling the contract that was the Kiss of Death.

However, she explained, her mission had changed at her great-grandmother's behest, instead emphasizing the need to contact the young martial artist and ensure their safety.

"A dark evil, my great-grandmother described. An old lecherous force that my great-grandmother encountered many centuries ago, and great-grandmother has a great concern for anyone who she sees following the dark path he forged."

"Happousai," Kaori breathed quietly.

Shampoo nodded somberly.

"The Master is dead," Kaori said, waving her hand dismissively. "Yumiko and I made sure of that."

"Even if he dead, spirits are very strong and… strange entities. Something may tie him back to Earth, even in proxy," Shampoo said, idly staring into her hands. "Even if spirit of no concern, Shampoo tasked to ensure the welfare of Ranma Saotome."

"I see, well…" Kaori said with a sigh. "In that case, please. It would be my honor to have you as a house guest, so that you may meet them directly. Would you be willing to wait a few days? We're going to be a little busy."

Shampoo considered things and then nodded. "That sounds fine," the Chinese woman said, giving Kaori a soft smile.

"Wonderful, let me write down my address…"

…

Yumiko idly wondered if she was beginning to lose her mind. In the incredibly brief amount of time she and her child had spent at the Tendou family home, it felt like years had passed, years of growth and healing. Her memories seemed to regain hue and sharpness, and everything seemed to stop being so confusing. For the first time in many years, she liked who she was. She wondered if it was the fact she was getting a chance to live the dreams she had once had as a teenager, or if it was something else.

She still couldn't understand why she blindly fell into the lap of Nodoka. Not a single thing about the entire experience made sense, which was made worse by the fact that all that time of marriage and the training trip she had dragged Ranma on remained quite hazy to her. She found she could barely remember events that had been only a scant few weeks prior, and the thought was quite haunting. Even the Cat Fist technique, which she had clear memory of reading and believing in as a valid method of training, now seemed like an unbelievably stupid concept– who would throw their child into a pit of cats?

 _Someone who marries an ultranationalist like Nodoka, unfortunately,_ Yumiko thought glumly, idly wondering how she'd cross that bridge when it reared its ugly head.

A familiar, and very gentle hand on her shoulder startled her from her reverie. Looking over at Kaori's concerned face, Yumiko permitted herself a gentle smile to her girlfriend.

"I'm okay, Kaori," she said as she turned her head back out of the car window. The government-issued sedan was filled with the Tendou-Saotome household, as it made its way to the theatre. She was filled with an unending melancholy, and silently cursed herself for being a thespian. The art of performance, combined with the atrocities of the Grandmaster and her good-for-nothing father, had left her with an unending well of emotion, but with little ability to excise the demons rattling the cage.

Sighing briefly, she sat up straighter, and looked around the interior of the vehicle.

Ranma and Akane were in an animated conversation about something, the two debating the finer points of whatever it may be with smiles on their faces and joy in their eyes.

It warmed Yumiko's heart that her child was finding some modicum of progress and normality here– it was all she could have wanted for her offspring. Ranma was in boy mode for once, but his affable effeminacy was persistent, tightly walking the line between two sexes, much as Yumiko had done in her youth once she was free of her bondage. Memories of fishnets and terrible wigs trickled up from the past, soliciting a quiet laugh.

She only hoped that Ranma had already found a good place, and could stay there forever.

The other Tendou daughters were having a casual conversation, with Kaori occasionally chiming in for some reason or another. The car began to slow down, and Kaori perked up with a smile.

"Ah, I believe we're here."

Yumiko was the first to step out of the cab, the finely-dressed driver keeping his straight-edge, neutral expression of service. She bowed to him and thanked him, and walked up the steps to the theatre. Kaori soon joined her flank, with the rest of the party following.

As they entered the foyer of the beautiful theatre, Yumiko was swiftly assaulted by a myriad of misty memories of her childhood, performing in some of the finest theatres in Kyoto. It was like coming home after a very long exile.

The owner of the theatre, an elderly gentleman with a wry smile, seemed to be even more jovial at the sight of Kaori.

"Kaori, my dear! It is so wonderful to have you. The doors open to the public soon, and we're awaiting the other honored guests! Who are all these wonderful people you have in your company this evening?"

Kaori smiled serenely, gave a bow and spoke. "This is my family, Hayashi-san. This is my partner, Saotome Yumiko."

"I'm sorry, did you say _Saotome_?" he said, surprise evident in his voice.

"Yes, that is correct," Yumiko said, bowing. "It's a pleasure to meet your acquaintance."

"No, it is definitely mine," he said, bowing back. "Hayashi Takahiro is my name."

He turned back to Kaori and said, "Kaori, dear, you must come over for dinner some night. Saburo and I are dying to catch up with you after all this time. We've hardly seen you since Mariko's passing."

The mention of Tendou Mariko seemed to deflate Kaori slightly. She sighed and took Takahiro's hand.

"Takahiro, I know it has been far too long. It only just recently I have found myself parting from the dark clouds that have blinded me for far too long, and this woman is the reason," Kaori said, dropping towards a whisper, and bowing her head to the older man.

Takahiro nodded and said, "Well, I am certainly glad that is the case. Now come, enough talk of the dark things in life, today is a night of celebration!"

"I agree," Yumiko said with a smile. "Tell me, Hayashi-san, what is on the bill tonight?"

"Please, dear, you're dating someone who is very near and dear to my heart. Call me Takahiro. As for tonight's play, well, we wanted to do something domestic. The Kikugumi Kagekidan is renowned for their spectacular performance and pagentry. I… do not mean to be presumptious, Miss Saotome but… your last name, you wouldn't happen to be…?" Takahiro let the question trail off, unable to complete his sentence.

Yumiko took a deep breath and gave a brief nod. "Yes," she said quietly, "I was once part of that troupe, when I was a very young child."

"Oh, how splendid! I suppose fate has ordained us all be here. How mischievous, just like the gods themselves!"

"I suppose it would be within the sense of humor of the kami to do such things," Kaori said idly, before wrapping an arm around Yumiko's waist.

"Takahiro," she said with her same serene smile, "It's been very good seeing you again."

"Likewise, Kaori," Takahiro said, before turning to Yumiko.

"And it has been an incredible honor meeting you, Miss Saotome. All the best," he said as he gave her a deep bow of respect.

The slight sickness in the pit of her stomach receded once she was alone with Kaori and the family in the top box. She felt a firm hand on her arm, and looked to see Ranma staring up at her in concern. She gently moved her hand to her child's shoulder and gave them a quick wink. "I'll be alright," she murmured to them.

She retreated into her head to take inventory. Acting was a fire that had refused to go out and being here once more had only engorged the flame, sending it towering higher than any other in the world. She didn't _hate_ martial arts, merely resented what she had to go through to get where she was now.

Closing her eyes, she felt, very briefly, that she could still hear and smell the backstage, where the magic seemed to leak from every inch of every corner.

…

The play was nothing less than spectacular.

Yumiko had nearly suffered a heart attack when the performance had opened much in the same way her first performance. A young onnagata, acting the part of a young imperial princess, entered into the same scene as a couple others.

The lines of the play were long forgotten, but the warm, almost saccharine memories of childhood came tearing back into her heart like the typhoon that had sunk it all.

She concentrated on nothing but the play, noticing very briefly that she was leaning forward, her hands gripping the railing to the box. Her knuckles had gone snow white from how hard she was gripping the railing. Letting go and slipping back into her seat, Yumiko found the slight nausea and discomfort she had felt earlier were now amplified.

It was only made worse at the intermission, when one of the ushers had invited them backstage after the show to meet with the troupe itself. The prospect of meeting her family on unfamiliar terms, in the form she was in, filled her with a level of horrified indignation she hadn't felt in years.

Ever the dutiful companion, and refusing to invoke her father's "secret technique", Yumiko stood firm and agreed when Kaori quietly looked for her response. At the end of the play, rapturous applause shook the walls of the house, as the enthusiastic attendees lauded praise upon one of Japan's most famous acting troupes.

Descending from their box and being ushered into the back by some of the low-level functionaries, Yumiko quietly walked alongside Kaori through the backstage area, her wistful feelings and deep-rooted nostalgia welling back up from the darkness.

Yumiko's feet failed her when she caught the sight of Takahiro conversing with two people of a similar age: a balding man in a western-style tuxedo, his mustache finely trimmed and his spectacles perched cleanly upon his nose; and the man's companion, whose gray hair mixed with silver, wrapped tightly in a bun. She was wearing a finely made kimono, one Yumiko recognized.

" _Jiji, obaasan,_ " Yumiko murmured quietly, panic evident in her voice.

Kaori gently locked arms with Yumiko and spoke quietly. "We're all here with you, dear."

Yumiko found a little burst of will to carry on, and fearfully ventured her way across the backstage area to where the three were conversing.

"Ah, here they are! Kaori, I'd like to introduce you to Saotome Atsuko and Saotome Hiro. Hiro is the former patriarch of the troupe, but has since retired," Takahiro said, gesturing to the two other older people in the group.

"Hiro-san, Atsuko-san, this is Tendou Kaori," he said, craning his neck in the direction of the elderly couple.

"Pleasure," Kaori said, bowing in respect. "Allow me to introduce you to my partner."

Yumiko hesitated, panic welling up in her chest.

"S-Saotome Yumiko."

There was an awkward silence before Hiro said, "I've never seen you at the family reunions. Um… which part of the family are you from?"

The panic had flooded over the highwater mark, and Yumiko began to feel a distinct numbness traveling up her appendages. With the last gasp of energy, she turned on her heel and made to sprint for the backdoor.

She didn't manage it as Kaori's arms wrapped around her waist and yanked her close, causing her to sag against her girlfriend for support. The feeling in her legs was beginning to give out as the numbness spread.

"Hiro-san, Atsuko-san… perhaps this would be better explained over dinner? Would you be interested?"

Atsuko quietly eyed the woman leaning on Kaori, before giving a nod. "I think that'd be the best solution," she said.

Kaori nodded and said, "Ranma, are you still there?"

"Yeah, I'm here," the dark-haired martial artist said, coming up to the other side of Yumiko.

"Please take your mother and help her back to the car, if you'd please." Kaori said, gently moving Yumiko over to Ranma, who gave a dutiful nod.

"Come on, Ma… let's get you somewhere quiet," Ranma murmured quietly into her ear. The two departed the backstage area, as Kaori jotted down her address.

"Here you go. Is tomorrow okay for you both?"

"Certainly," Atsuko said, nodding and accepting the leaf of paper from Kaori.

…

Back in the car, Ranma mused on the strangeness of the situation. The woman sobbing into their shoulder was a far cry from the man who had marched Ranma across Japan and China, who had thrown them into a pit of cats and a Jusenkyō spring.

Ranma felt a sorrowful sympathy as they gently held their mother close. They felt a sharp determination to see all this misery and suffering end. Nobody deserved to feel this terrible. It just wasn't right.

Yumiko eventually quieted down, and pulled herself off of Ranma. Her eyes were bright red and her makeup ruined. "What's happened to me," Yumiko said quietly, partially to herself, partially to Ranma, and partially to nobody in particular. "I used to not let it hurt me so much, but now it's all I ever think about… I used to not be so weak and helpless."

"You're discovering yourself again, Mom. It's not a bad thing," Ranma said, trying to comfort her.

Yumiko didn't respond, and simply stared off into the void.


	11. Chapter 11

Atsuko and Hiro Saotome crossed the threshold into their hotel room. Hiro immediately sat at the edge of the king sized bed as his wife closed the door behind her.

"What do you think, Hiro?" Atsuko said quietly, folding her hands behind her back.

"Well... I don't know. She's certainly a dead-ringer for Koharu... but Koharu didn't have a daughter before her death... and Genma died in that typhoon with her."

"They never recovered his body with hers," Atsuko murmured, tapping her finger to her chin. "But he's too young to be her father. He'd be 36, and she looks to be in her mid-20s. Unless he was sexually active in his youth, I doubt it."

She turned to face her husband, staring him firmly in the eye.

"But _Yumiko_ Saotome? That was Geki's stage name."

"It could just be a coincidence."

"Maybe, he did also use Sadako once or twice..." Atsuko said, sighing heavily and rubbing the bridge of her nose. "But what does this mean?"

"It may mean that the circumstances of Koharu's death were... not quite what we thought, and that our grandchild may still be alive." Hiro said, taking her hand in his.

"In fact," He said, blinking in recollection, "He may very well have children of his own. Did you see the young one behind the two women? The tall black-haired one?"

"I did," Atsuko said, nodding. The dark-haired one was dressed effeminately, but in the theatre community this was no indication-besides, it was the 80s. Bygone cultural traditions be damned.

"That child bore a striking resemblance to the family. The soft, round features and eyes." Hiro said, before smiling. "They look a little like you when we first met."

Atsuko gave her husband a knowing smile.

"You're so sweet to me, Hiro..." She said, kissing her husband on the forehead.

"We'll know the truth soon enough, my love. I wouldn't put anything off the table just yet. But all I know is that this... Yumiko woman has something troubling her. The way she acted, the way she carried herself... I have seen that far too often in my years of theatre... and it's never a good thing to see."

"If she... is... I can only wonder what that bastard did to our grandchild, Hiro. I can only wonder..." Atsuko murmured.

...

"Yumiko, darling. I love you, but you've got to calm down," Kaori pleaded with her girlfriend, who was frantically trying to make sure everything was perfect, as so to please her grandparents.

"But everything has to be perfect, nothing can be out of place- if things are out of place, they might find out how terrible I've been and not want me anymore and I don't-"

She was silenced when she was sharply yanked back onto the bed with Kaori.

"Listen to me, Saotome Yumiko, you beautiful, sexy woman. You don't need to worry about this so much. Your grandparents are going to be _over the moon_ with happiness to know that you're alive and well, and that you have people who love you. You've got a child who would do anything to keep you safe, and a girlfriend who would do _anything_ to make you smile. Please don't worry so much."

Yumiko stared quietly into Kaori's eyes before nodding in surrender.

Kaori gently kissed her lips and let her back up.

"You're right. I'm sorry," Yumiko murmured, "I've just been in such a state of change since Ranma and I got here."

"There's a lot of things that are in change, my dear. There has been a pall over your eyes for so long, I'm so glad you're back among the living," Kaori said as she gently moved a stray hair away from Yumiko's eyes.

"Yumiko, my beautiful raven-haired beauty," Kaori said, gently smiling at her girlfriend. "Perhaps we'll go away for awhile, away from Tokyo and the hustle and bustle. We could all use a very long vacation," She said, gently stroking Yumiko's cheek.

"Kaori," Yumiko murmured, smiling. "Stop being so horny."

"I can't help it, darling. When we're alone, I'm filled with such passion and love."

"Maybe later, baby," Yumiko whispered, gently squeezing Kaori's thigh.

...

"Saotome."

Ranma looked up from their schoolbook to see Nabiki standing in their doorway.

"Oh, hey Nabiki, what's goin' on?" They asked, marking their place and placing the book on the bed.

"I'm taking you out to a baseball game," Nabiki said, a smile crossing her face. She flipped her hand and two tickets appeared in her hand, almost like magic.

"Nippon Professional Baseball game, the Yakult Swallows are playing the Hankyu Braves." She said, waving the tickets as if to entice Ranma.

"Baseball? I've never been to an actual professional baseball game. I've played it a few times in school and with some neighborhood kids growin' up... but I've never _actually_ been to one." Ranma said, scratching the base of their neck.

"Well, first time for everything! This is kind of an experiment, so I want you to be in guy mode today, if you don't mind," Nabiki said, folding her hands behind her back.

"Guy mode? I guess it _has_ been awhile since I had a boy day... I guess it wouldn't hurt."

...

Ranma wasn't quite sure what this feeling pooling in the pit of their stomach was. They were comfortable in the clothes they were wearing-a graphic t-shirt with something English slapped on it, a pair of jeans, and trainers; but they were distinctly feeling uncomfortable in nearly every other way.

The way they were treated, spoken to, and interacted with seemed to be so drastically different than when they were of either ambiguous gender, or outright in female mode. Ranma had to admit now, that being a guy was far less fun than he remembered.

His discomfort by the end of the second inning was notable, and Nabiki looked at him.

"Are you okay, Saotome?"

"I guess so, Nabiki. It's nothing, just a little uncomfortable."

"Hmm," Nabiki said, before she picked up her backpack she'd been carrying around all morning, and tossed it into Ranma's lap. She gestured for Ranma to open it.

Unzipping it, Ranma peered inside and blinked. They turned to look at Nabiki who smiled and gestured for them to go take care of business.

Ranma zipped the bag back up and darted to the bathrooms; they didn't even hesitant as they blew through the door emblazoned with a female icon. A few minutes later, a much shorter red-headed girl emerged from the bathroom, wearing a baseball cap, a Swallows top, jean shorts and trainers.

Ranma returned to her seat, dropping down next to Nabiki and giving the middle Tendō a big hug.

Nabiki kept her eye on Ranma the rest of the game, and _boy_ it was like a night and day difference. The first two innings, Ranma had been a little reserved, merely content to just watch the game. Now, Ranma was up on her feet hooting and hollering, cheering for the team she had started liking.

The perks weren't bad either- the food vendors were completely smitten by the redhead, to the point where one had tried to give both her and Ranma free samples of peanuts, but Ranma had firmly insisted on giving him _something_ , so she ended up getting it half-off, which wasn't a bad deal in Nabiki's eyes.

After the game, as their train made its way home from Shinjuku, Nabiki found herself idly watching Ranma again.

"Hey, Saotome," Nabiki asked in a low voice.

"Hm? What's up, Nabiki?" Ranma asked, glancing back at her idly.

"I hope you take this experience as a chance to self-evaluate. Part of this was an experiment to see how you dealt with navigating the social cues of boys and girls, and you genuinely seemed happier in your girl form than boy. This is the sort of thing that my mother and sister dealt with in their early days of transition, so I deeply implore you to take your time and _explore_ your options and what it means to be yourself," Nabiki said, her chocolate brown eyes boring deep into Ranma's.

Ranma's face blushed and he turned away.

"Hey, I'm not saying this to be mean, Ranma," Nabiki said, gently placing a hand on his cheek. "I'm saying this because I care."

"Right, I just... I'm not quite sure what it means yet."

"That's okay, take your time. There is no rush, Ranma," She said with a smile.

...

Kaori opened the door, expecting Atsuko and Hiro-instead, she found herself faced to face with the indigo-haired Amazon, Shampoo.

"Shampoo? Oh! Yes! I invited you this evening. Come in, there's been a slight change in plans, but you're welcome to join us just the same," She said, beckoning her through the doorway.

"Thank you for your hospitality," Shampoo said, bowing her head in deferential respect. "How have plans changed?" The Amazon asked, looking at her hostess.

"Ranma's great-grandparents are in town, and we're trying to sort out some old family trauma for Yumiko."

"Who?" Shampoo asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Ah, Yumiko. Ranma's companion when they were in China. The criminal, as you say." Kaori said quietly.

"Ah, hm. I wonder if this all has to do with Great-Grandmother's decision to change his sentence..." Shampoo murmured to herself in contemplation.

"Either way," Kaori said, smiling.

Shampoo seated herself in the family room and sat patiently as Kasumi dispensed some tea for her. Drinking quietly, Shampoo took advantage of the situation to contemplate her next step, and consider tactical and strategic options.

When Ranma entered the room, Shampoo nearly dropped her tea. A far cry from the dirty, malnourished outsider she'd seen during their last encounter in the heart of China... this person was different. Well-fed, bright-eyed and _beautiful_.

The shine in her eyes disappeared as soon as she made eye contact with Shampoo, which made the Amazon's stomach wrench a bit.

"S-S-Shampoo!"

" _Nihao_ , Ranma. Shampoo bring you no harm."

"Why are you here?" Ranma asked, inching away from Shampoo.

"Welfare check. Elder concerned of your well-being," Shampoo said.

"My well-being? You nearly killed me in China!"

"Was ruse. If you remember, Shampoo never _actually_ do anything to harm you."

Ranma blinked and shook her head.

"That doesn't matter," she said, folding her arms under her chest. "You stalked me across China over some food! I was hungry as hell! I hadn't eaten in a couple days!"

"That is why Shampoo here. Great-Grandmother, Elder of Tribe, get bad feeling about something attached to Criminal. She send Shampoo here to make sure you safe. Great-Grandma also seek to establish presence here, to ensure whatever bad thing not come back."

"Yes, uh... Ranma. There's some... things about your mother's upbringing that are a little troublesome to talk about. I can only speak on my experiences. Some years ago, there was a man named Happousai-he created the Anything Goes Martial Arts school, and... had some very unorthodox and questionable methods of training. When your father and I were young, we were forced to train under him by our fathers to rid ourselves of what they saw as... _degenerate_ ideas. In both our cases, it was... a curiosity for the same sex, and an interesting in crossdressing."

Kaori shrugged.

"Of course now, we both know that we're just two healthy, normal, bisexual transgender women," she said, folding her arms. "But back in those days, particularly here in Japan, it was far less sensible. Happousai was a perverted little gnome who did a lot of very bad things to your mother, particularly because he couldn't do them to me. My father may have hated the real me, but he was still a respected businessman, and even Happousai wasn't willing to invoke that ire."

"What kinds of things?" Ranma asked, looking at Kaori intently.

"Things I don't really think either one of us want to discuss. Let's just say they've left some very deep scars on your mother. But, ultimately, we managed to break free from his control. We... _destroyed_ him. His very essence was abolished." She said with a nervous demeanor.

"But the energy of the perverted influence remains, like a taint. Great-Grandmother saw that, and was concerned," Shampoo interjected, placing her hands on the table. "We don't think he can come back-but we want be sure by protecting Ranma and Criminal. Also now Miss Kaori and family."

Ranma didn't say or do anything for a moment before walking around the table and wrapping Shampoo in a hug.

"Thank you, then. She needs as much help as she can get."

Yumiko entered the room and stopped cold after noticing Shampoo's presence.

"Yu-chan, it's okay. She's not here to harm you. She's here on a mission to protect you and Ranma."

"Protect us?"

"Yes." Shampoo replied, nodding.

"Why?"

"Ensure pervert you destroy never come back."

"Ah, yes... okay." Yumiko nodded, taking on a grave expression that eerily reminded Ranma that the man who raised her was still somewhere in there. She suddenly brightened back up to her new normal, and looked at Ranma and Kaori.

"You two, how do I look?"

She was decked out in a beautiful kimono-not quite formal and prim and proper, but comfortable and certainly pretty. Ranma didn't even get a word in edgewise before Kaori swept across the room and wrapped her girlfriend up in her arms.

"My love, you're gorgeous." Kaori purred.

Shampoo blinked.

"You and Criminal... are Sisters-in-arms?" She asked, surprised at such a development.

"Sisters-in-arms?" Kaori asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Unless I'm mistaken, baby, I think she means we're lesbians." Yumiko said quietly.

"Oh, then yes! Yumiko and I are lovers," Kaori said, gently smooching Yumiko, soliciting a giggle from Yumiko.

...

Dinner was masterfully assembled thanks to the joint efforts of Ranma, Ukyo and Kasumi. Atsuko and Hiro had arrived on time, and had been seated next to the Amazon woman, who, unbeknownst to everyone in the room, had a great affection for thespian arts, being a major supporter of it back home during festival and harvest seasons.

The discussion on how thespian craft worked in tribal China versus modern Japan had carried the majority of the public conversation before and during dinner. As the last bits of the meal were consumed, the plates were cleared away and the awkwardness of the situation seemed to come to full froth.

"So, we owe you a bit of an explanation," Kaori said with a nod. "Fortunately, we've got Shampoo here to attest to the validity of what we say, and... of course, we'll show you how what we're going to discuss works. Ranma, is the water ready?"

"Yeah, let me go get it," the dark-haired girl said, springing to her feet and dashing into the kitchen, out of sight.

"My name is Saotome Yumiko," Yumiko began, gently clasping Kaori's hand in hers. "I'm the daughter of Saotome Koharu and..." She hesitated, her face took on the kind of expression one would have after drinking curdled milk.

"Kichirou Yamauchi," she finished, nearly spitting her father's name out like it was tainted.

"But... Koharu didn't have any daughters before her death, just... a son. Genma." Hiro said, clearly confused.

"Well, this is where the story gets a little... befuddled," Yumiko said, as Ranma returned from the kitchen. Ranma was completely stripped down, save for a towel wrapped around her flat chest.

"I asked Ranma to go through a slight humiliation conga here because this will make a great demonstration of what's going on. So this is how Ranma was born, 16 years ago. As you can see, Ranma has the body of a very athletic and... much to my shame, _neglected_ 16 year old boy. But with water," she gestured to the cup of cold water in front of them. "Ranma can change sexes."

She flung the glass of water onto Ranma, who bristled briefly as the change took over. Suddenly, the towel was restraining two fleshy breasts and wider hips; but they were also several centimeters shorter than they had been before. Clearly, the person in front of them was now physically female, but no change of person had taken place outside of the transformation.

Ranma left the room and returned moments later, fully dressed again, but in a feminine outfit. Taking a seat next to Akane, they sheepishly smiled at Atsuko and Hiro.

"Ranma is cursed by something called _Nyannichuan_ , or Spring of Drowned Girl. I have the same curse, but... unfortunately, due to the influence of my _wife_ ," Yumiko said, the last word spewing out of her mouth like wretched bile. "I did some... terrible things to my child's well-being. Either way, as a result of my actions, I was punished by a tribe in the heart of China."

"My great-grandmother, the Village Elder, gave _Yumiko_ ," Shampoo said, using Yumiko's name for the first time, "a pressure point treatment, that enabled something called the Full-Body Cat's Tongue. This makes it impossible for them to come into contact with hot water, as it causes _unbelievable_ pain and suffering by burning their skin. The Phoenix Pill is the only antidote, which my Great-Grandmother is preparing to give to Yumiko, once she demonstrates to her directly that she is no longer the contemptible spawn of indecency she was before."

Atsuko and Hiro were trying to catch up with the information. They weren't wholly sure what to make of all this. Atsuko eventually spoke.

"This is all very interesting, truly so-but how do we _know_ you're Genma? We were told he died in Typhoon Nancy."

"All my childhood belongings have been lost to time, I'm sure... there's really no way for me to prove this to you."

Atsuko quietly eyed Yumiko before looking at Hiro.

Atsuko sighed and said, "I'm willing to believe it, Hiro. I mean, she's a dead-ringer for Koharu."

"My question is-what happened after Koharu's death?" Hiro asked, looking at his wife.

"I was kidnapped by my father," Yumiko said, frowning deeply. "I was taken to Tokyo where I was eventually sold into a form of slavery to a martial arts master named Happōsai. I managed to get out of my bondage, but it left me with permanent scars. I did independent onnagata for a period of time, but I ended up marrying a woman who... I'll not go into details, but she was abusive. Lots of things are making sense now that I'm no longer in her control."

"Hey, you know what, I think I have something that'll help," Kaori said, before dashing upstairs. She returned carrying a film reel, and a film projector. After getting Nabiki's help with setting it up, they projected on one of the thin film screens in the family room.

"This is how we'll prove it. I recorded Yumiko during one of her performances in college."

Flicking the switch, a colour film played, with Yumiko performing on a small stage in onnagata. She bore clear resemblance to the woman in front of them now. The film cut over to something else.

"Genma, you were so wonderful!" A woman's voice could be heard, filled with laughter and mirth.

"Oh, I wasn't _that_ great. You should've seen how my aunt used to do that scene. She was so much better."

"Nonsense, don't put yourself down, Genma," A huskier, deeper version of Kaori's voice could be heard.

"Well," Film Genma said, grinning ear to ear, "I really appreciate that you two."

He was clearly a grown-up version of the child Atsuko and Hiro remembered for those fleeting few years.

Kaori suddenly stood up and tried to stop the film reel from continuing, but had difficulty getting it to cooperate. The rest of the film seemed intent on playing without stoppage.

Suddenly, the woman whose voice had been heard entered the scene- this was clearly a younger Mariko Tendou, before her marriage to Kaori. She gave Genma a very deep kiss on the lips. She turned to the camera and said, "Come on Soun, I know you wanted to do that too- here, lemme take the camera."

The camera changed hands, the screen shaking for a moment before a younger Soun appeared on screen. He swept the younger Genma off his feet and deeply kissed him on the lips.

The film stopped and everyone's heads craned to look at a scarlet-red Yumiko and Kaori.

"Uh... _Mama_ ," Kasumi asked quietly, "Were... you, Auntie Yumiko and... Mother... an item?"

"Once upon a time, yes. It... didn't quite work out as we intended, I think my sweet Yumiko felt... like a third wheel with all the problems she was dealing with, but yes... your mother, Yumiko and I originally intended to be in a polyamorous relationship, but it just didn't work out."

Hiro and Atsuko, for their part, were stunned.

"That was Genma." Atsuko murmured, before nearly snapping her neck to look at Yumiko.

There was a beat of silence before the sound of sobbing filled the room as Yumiko, Atsuko and Hiro nearly climbed over the table to get to each other, sobbing loudly about being reunited.

After breaking apart, Atsuko wiped her eyes and said, "You must come back to Osaka with us and the family. Just for a couple days. Please. It would mean so much to all of us. This is such a fortunate blessing, the Kami are truly shining down upon us in mercy."

"I'd love to do that, obaasan." She buried herself in her grandmother's shoulder, enjoying an embrace she had been denied for decades.

Hiro looked towards Ranma.

"You too, my child. So many aunts and uncles are going to be so pleased when they hear they have... a niece?" He ended it with a question towards Ranma's androgyny. Ranma nodded positively and hugged Hiro.

"I'd love to as well," Ranma said, smiling.

...

Yumiko felt like the world had been lifted from her shoulders. With a genuine smile adorning her face, she stood on the train platform waiting for the train to Osaka to arrive. Vice Principal Tsukuda had given her and Ranma writ to go on a brief sabbatical to see their long-lost family, and Kaori had taken the day off work to come see them off.

"I want you two to be safe, and enjoy your time in Osaka, okay?" Kaori said, gently wiping the dust off her girlfriend's blouse.

"We'll be good, dear," Yumiko said, gently kissing Kaori's cheek. There were a few on the platform who gave them dirty looks, but Ranma's equally dirty and dangerous glares forced people to keep their opinions to themselves.

Boarding the train and finding a seat, Ranma and Yumiko settled down as the train began to roll down the track. They were undertaking a four hour train ride from Nerima to Chuo, a very old ward of Osaka, where the Saotome Family clustered themselves together.

"Are you excited, Ma?" Ranma asked, looking at Yumiko who was staring out the window.

"Yes, but also very nervous," Yumiko said, idly rubbing her wrist. "I'd kill for a drink right about now."

Ranma sighed and eyed Yumiko carefully. "We need to get your mind off the anxiety," Ranma said, procuring a deck of cards.

"A round of cards, then?" Ranma offered. Yumiko looked at the cards and then smiled.

"Is that a challenge, my child?"

"Well... yeah. I guess it is." Ranma said, a cocky smirk settling on her face.

"You're on," Yumiko said, her eyes narrowing into an almost comical parody of her old self.

The two played a number of card games, with Yumiko squeaking out a narrow victory over her child in the last game, ending with a score of 3-2. A satisfied smile on her face, Yumiko handed the deck of cards back to Ranma.

Ranma gave her a pout. "I can't believe you won," she said, sticking the deck of cards back in her bag.

"Many years of experience, my child," Yumiko said, giving a wink and leaning back in her chair. "How have you been, Ranma? We've both been so consumed by everything these last couple weeks, I just wanted to make sure you were doing okay," She said with a slight smile.

"Oh! Uh, not so bad I guess. School's still pretty confusin' and I'm not really sure... what I'm supposed to be? I'm not far from finally knowin' but it's confusing," Ranma said, knitting her eyebrows in frustration.

"Always has been," Yumiko said, grinning.

"Yeah... Akane's been a little occupied with her clubs lately, so I haven't seen much of her. I think she's still a little hurt that I took Tatewaki out on a date," Ranma said quietly.

Yumiko shrugged. "You know, you and Akane are going through a tremendous growth, changing like the seasons. I'm sure once everything is settled down, you and I aren't so damn worried about _everything_ , things will get better for your relationship," She said, shrugging.

"I suppose so," Ranma said, smiling.

...

Back at the Tendou family home, Kaori was nose-deep in a novel she hadn't had a chance to get back to in nearly a month. The story was full of drama and intrigue, exactly the sort of thing she liked in a story. Finishing the chapter, she placed the bookmark in the book and closed it. As she set the book back on the table, a sickening, cold shiver shot up her spine.

"Ech," she muttered, shaking it off. "What the hell was that?"

Just then, the bell at the front door chimed. Not expecting visitors, Kaori blinked and said, "I'll get it, Kasumi!"

She made her way to the front door, and cracked the door open. The person on the other end made her blood go cold.

"Hello Soūn," Nodoka Saotome said in her frosted tone. "I was wondering if you've heard from Genma in the last few weeks? He hasn't written home like he is supposed to."

"Hmm," Kaori said, "I'm afraid I haven't."

"That's unfortunate," Nodoka said, shaking her head. "May I come in? It's been a long time since we've talked."

Kaori sighed and opened her door, and invited Nodoka in. Kaori briefly felt like she was inviting in a vampire. Kasumi was ready with some tea, having felt the same shiver up her spine as her mother.

"Oh, Kasumi dear, thank you," Nodoka said, accepting the tea. "You've become such a lovely young lady. It's quite a surprise given your upbringing. You'll make a wonderful _yamato nadeshiko_. You do the Empire proud."

Kasumi snorted quietly, but was ignored by Nodoka.

"How is your son, Soūn?"

"My name is _Kaori_ , Nodoka. And her name is Akane."

"Oh, surely you're not entertaining such degenerate ideas? How can your son ever hope to maintain your family honor and serve the Empire faithfully and well if he insists on being a transvestite?"

Kaori opened her mouth to issue a retort to Nodoka's rudeness, when the sounds of someone coming around the corner were heard.

"Miss Kaori?" Shampoo's voice questioned, before the indigo-haired Chinese woman popped into sight.

"Oh! Hello, Shampoo. How are you?"

"Very good."

"Oh my," Nodoka said, shaking her head. "I never thought you'd stoop so low, Soūn."

"What are you blathering on about now?" Kaori said, glaring at Nodoka.

"I can handle you being a degenerate, I can even handle you being a member of the traitor Liberal Democrats... but _consorting_ with shinajin? That's just plain treason against the Empire."

"Who the hell are you calling _shinajin_ , _Riben guizi_?" Shampoo asked, her eyebrows creasing in annoyance.

"Well, it's quite clear, isn't it? Your darker skin, your sharper eyes, your sallow features... you're clearly the epitome of Chinese blood purity... or lack thereof. I do hope my husband and son haven't been so foolish as to consort with people like you during their journey. I don't know what possessed them to defy my orders and go to Communist China," Nodoka said, as if what she was saying was universal fact.

"Ah, blood purity. Your blood purity didn't save you from getting your ass kicked by the Americans."

"That was because our Armed Forces abdicated the divine will of the Emperor!" Nodoka said, slamming her fist down on the table. "Hmpf. Haven't you got some sparrows to murder, _shinajin_?" Nodoka asked, glaring at the Chinese girl.

"That depends. Don't you have some civilians to kill?" Shampoo retorted.

Nodoka's face reddened, and she suddenly rose.

"I will return, Tendō," She said, taking her leave in an angry manner.

As soon as Nodoka had gone, Kaori placed her head on the table.

"By all things holy, I hate that woman."

"That is Ranma's mother?" Shampoo asked, glaring at the empty spot where Nodoka had been before her hasty departure.

"Egg donor would be a more charitable attribution," Kaori corrected. "But yes, that's her."

"I understand. I can take care of her if you want?" Shampoo offered, making a throat-slashing motion with her hand.

"No," Kaori said, "No murder. That's apprehensible."

"Well, I'm not too sure about that, Mother," Kasumi said, returning from the kitchen, a book in her hands. "There can be no peace between ourselves and someone abhorrent like her," She said, shaking her head.

"I can't believe you're advocating the cold-blooded murder of someone, Kasumi. I didn't raise you that way!" Kaori said, glaring at her eldest daughter.

"This is the same woman who subjected Auntie Yumiko to years of torture, and made Auntie subject Ranma to years of torture in kind. How can we claim to consider her as anything but an enemy?"

"We have to be tactful about this-we're not in a lawless place. We have to do this within the law."

"What if we get Uncle Ibari to take care of her?" Kasumi asked.

"I'd rather not have Oozora take care of her, we need to do this through legitimate channels," Kaori said, shrugging her shoulders.

Shampoo frowned. "I will tell Great-Grandmother to accelerate her timetable. She needs to be here as soon as possible," She said, before turning to face Kaori. "Do you have a telephone?"

"Yes," Kaori said, pointing to the telephone on a nearby stand.

"Thank you," Shampoo went over to the phone and started dialing a number.

While that was going on, Kasumi looked out towards the koi pond. "We could probably anticipate her being nosy. For what ever reason, Ranma and Yumiko are in danger. What if she tries to get custody of Ranma? Says Yumiko is unfit?"

"We fight her with every asset we have... and if all else fails, then we may discuss permanent solutions, daughter. But not one moment before that," Kaori said, sharply looking at Kasumi. "But don't count your dear ol' mother out yet... the Liberal Democratic Party is a clever institution. I've got plenty of connections that can make her life difficult."

"Hmpf, I'm not a _yamato nadeshiko_. Ugh, just being called that makes my skin crawl," Kasumi bemoaned, tugging at the hem of her dress. A thoughtful look crossed Kasumi's face as she stared at her mother for a few moments. Without saying anything, Kasumi turned on heel and returned to the kitchen.

Kaori swore there was a particular mischevious gleam in Kasumi's eye-one she had seen before in Mariko when she was going to change everything up and turn the current trend on its head. She was intrigued, and felt that a little injected chaos was _just_ what was needed.

It broke up the monotony anyway.

...

The train came to a stop in Osaka, and everyone seemed happy to finally get to get off the train. Yumiko and Ranma in particular were starting to feel antsy and confined. Getting out onto the platform, they noticed someone standing on the platform holding a sign that said _SAOTOME_.

The person was a young, dark-haired woman. As the two approached, she smiled.

"Yumiko and Ranma?" She asked, and the two gave a nod in affirmation.

"It's such a pleasure to meet you both, I'm Saotome Noriko, um, your cousin. Do you remember Yoshiro?"

"Yoshiro! Oh my goodness, I do! He would always pick me up and put me on his shoulders when I was little," Yumiko giggled at the memory. "How is he?"

"Doing well, actually! He was sick last year, but the chemotherapy worked well, and he's in remission now. We're so happy."

"Good to hear," Yumiko smiled, as Noriko escorted them to her car. It was a luxury vehicle, but wasn't flashy or over the top. The comfortable ride from the train station to Hiro and Atsuko's house was a quiet one, filled with idle conversation about what Tokyo was like.

"I've never actually been to Tokyo," Noriko admitted, turning a tinge of red in embarassment. "The troupe only goes so often, and I'm usually busy with school when they do."

"We've only been there a couple weeks, the last time I was there was in the early 1970s. It's a very beautiful city full of neon lights and stuff. But it does depend on where you go, Nerima is a very quiet part of the city," Yumiko said, smiling. "But very beautiful... with beautiful people in it."

"How cute," Noriko said, smiling. She looked at Ranma. "How old are you, Ranma?" She asked.

"Um, I'm sixteen."

"Wow! Sixteen! I think you'll get along well with Michiko. She's about your age."

"Michiko?" Ranma asked.

"Another cousin," Noriko said, smiling. "She's Uncle Musashi's daughter."

"Oh! Alright!" Ranma said with a nod. "Sounds fun."

...

It wasn't long before Ranma and Yumiko stood assembled before the large mass of Saotomes, with both of them interchangably explaining everything that had transpired in the last 26 years. Both had left out some of the stickier details, not wanting to air their own personal demons, but had made it clear that life wasn't exactly pleasant. A quick demonstration of the Jusenkyō curse had some of the members of the family stunned.

Finally, Yumiko concluded their presentation.

"So, this... is what happened to me after Typhoon Nancy. I understand some of you might be skeptical but I promise that I _am_ Genma... or was. I'm Yumiko now, and I'm a woman."

One of the older women in the room clapped her hands together. "I knew it! I knew from the minute that boy started doin' onnagata, he'd turn out to be a woman. By the Kami, welcome back, Yumiko. We've missed you."

"Yeah," Masahiro said, bowing his head. "We'd given up hope that you'd never come home and that you'd actually perished in that typhoon..."

The presentation dissolved into numberless Saotomes congratulating and hugging on Yumiko and Ranma. Eventually, during the chaos, Ranma felt someone snatch her collar, and she ended up standing in front of a girl her age.

"Hi! I'm Michiko! It's great to meet you!" Michiko said, tightly hugging Ranma.

"Hi, Michiko. I'm Ranma." Ranma said, smiling.

"Call me Michi-I prefer it. Gosh, c'mon, I'll show you my room!"

"Do you all live here together?" Ranma asked, raising an eyebrow. Michiko shook her head. "Obaasan and Jiji live in another house not far from here-but yeah, most of the kids and grandkids all live together. Except for you and Auntie Yumiko, of course, as well as a couple others."

"Ah," Ranma said, grinning.

She made her way to the bedroom with Ranma in tow, and as they went through the door, Ranma found herself in the presence of a couple more individuals.

One was a pretty dark-haired girl, and the other was a blue-haired androgyne.

"Ranchan, I'd like ta introduce you to a couple more of your teenaged cousins," She gestured to the two people. She pointed to the blue-haired one first. "This is Alto, he's one of the best onnagata in the troupe."

"Pleasure to meet you, Ranma," Alto said as he bowed respectfully.

"And this is Setsu, she and her folks actually live down in Kyushu."

"It's nice to meet you, Ranma," Setsu said, as she bowed as well.

"It's nice to meet you both," Ranma said, reciprocating.

"Michi was close about me. While _I_ am the best onnagata the troupe has, that's not really what I wanna do with my life. I've always fancied being a pilot. I've been thinking about joining the JSDF after graduating," Alto said, rubbing the back of his neck.

"And, I live in the Kumamoto prefecture with my parents and little sister. You've probably seen her, Natsuki," Setsu said, she seemed a little pleased at the idea of her little sister running around the house.

"Oh, cool! I live in Tokyo with my mom and her girlfriend, along with her girlfriend's kids. I'm... actually dating one of the girlfriend's kids. It's a big mess," Ranma said, feeling a little embarassed.

"Good, we need more gay people in this family. You know, for a bunch of thespians, _it sure is straight as hell_ in this family," Setsu said, folding her arms under her chest.

"Preach it, cousin!" Michiko said, waving her hands around like an televangelist.

"We're sort of a sub-faction of pretty queer people in the family, Ranma," Alto said, grinning. "Setsu and I are bisexual, Michi is a lesbian, and... I guess you're a trans lesbian... kinda."

"Kinda is correct," Ranma said, laughing some. "It's really super confusing!"

"Hey, let's have a sleepover tonight! I'll even let the little ankle-biters join in," Setsu suggested.

"I'm sure Hotaru and Natsuki would love to join us," Alto nodded.

"Yeah, sounds like fun!" Ranma proclaimed, grinning ear to ear.

That evening, despite being surrounded by family, and enjoying everything around her, Ranma still felt a distinct pang of want to return home to Nerima. She felt that she could get to love her family, but there was something special about the people she knew back home.

...

Among the adults of the Saotome family, the mood was incredibly somber. Yumiko had been going through the gauntlet of explaining the terrible things she had been subjected to at the hands of both her father and the Grandmaster. Some things had been omitted due to the sheer horror they invoked in her, but she had been grisly enough to provoke severe reaction from her loved ones.

"After I got away from the Grandmaster, I found myself on the streets in Tokyo with only a few hundred yen to my name," Yumiko said, taking a draught from her glass. "I ended up living with Kaori and her father, who helped me finish secondary school and get into a community college of decent standards. I also joined a local troupe as an onnagata, and finally got back to what I loved," She said, wistfully remembering those days in the passionate heat of 1969.

"But, after about eight months of performances, I was approached at a party by a young woman. Very beautiful, with copper hair and a devious smile," Yumiko said, recalling her first encounter with Nodoka. "It was a warm summer night, unseasonably so for Tokyo, and I'd been drinking a little too much. Emiko and I had been having some issues as she struggled with her own sexuality and I with mine, and... well, the night got hazy after Nodoka and I hit it off. All I remember is waking up in the morning in bed with her."

"It sounds like you were drugged," Uncle Yoshiro said, his voice firm and tempered.

"Well, I definitely think so these days; particularly since I think I may have been under an assortment of mind-altering medications for some years when Ranma was a child... but either way," She said with a sigh. "Allow me to continue. Not long after this, she came to me after a show and told me that she was pregnant. She and I married to save face, and thus began a very long decline in my mental and physical health at her hands..."

She sighed and took another drink.

"I don't blame Ranma," She said, shaking her head. "The child did nothing to deserve such a terrible household, and such mistreatment."

There was a lull of silence before Atsuko got up from her seat, walked over to Yumiko, and embraced her in a large hug.

"You're safe now, and we will make sure of that, child. Do you understand?"

"Yes, obaasan. Thank you so much, I love you. All of you," She said, sniffling.

There was nothing else said for a few minutes as everyone soaked in the emotional silence, which was only periodically interrupted by light sniffling coming from Yumiko. Not a single person in the room was left without thinking of things they wanted to do to Nodoka Saotome.

...

Kaori hadn't expected to feel this bad; a swelling loneliness and separation anxiety was keeping her awake, staring at the ceiling as if expecting the feeling to suddenly disappear. Since Mariko's passing, she had become accustomed to sleeping alone, but with Yumiko's arrival and the love they shared, those feelings of loneliness and wanderlust had simply disappeared.

But the absence of her companion was only one thing troubling her. Nodoka's vague threat lingered on her mind, and Kaori couldn't help but stress about what would become of the situation. It would be very easy to cast aside all moral high-ground and embrace the very thing she had spent her career standing against- violent criminality and brutality. She knew many people, Oozora in particular, who would make Nodoka disappear with no asked questions.

But she _had_ to discredit and destroy this woman in the place where all her evil could be brought to the light. This would not only allow her and Yumiko to pursue the maximum legal impact to ensure that every worry they had about Nodoka coming back to harm them was cast aside, but also to ensure the woman had a very long time to think about her transgressions.

Not that Kaori expected her to experience epiphany; the woman still firmly stuck to the guns of a war that had gone quiet four decades ago, and believed in the ideology of men whose necks had been strung up from the gallows. If the truth of war crimes and evil race politics didn't change her mind, she had grave doubt seeing what her family had gone through would do so either.

Kaori managed to find sleep eventually, but the troublesome thoughts and the anxious itch persisted.

But in spite of all that, if nothing else, she just wanted her Yumiko to come home.


	12. Chapter 12

The sight that greeted Kaori Tendou as she arrived home from work was not a very enjoyable one. Parts of the exterior perimeter wall were missing, and the house itself looked like a cyclone had come through and ruffled it up. To make matters worse-the sign the gate to the property was missing. A deep, creased frown fell upon her face as she approached the door of her home.

She went to open the door, only to find that the door itself was broken-simply wedged under the _ranma_ to give the illusion of sanctity. Dropping her bags to the floor, Kaori slipped into a ready stance and began to prowl the hallway looking for the responsible party. As she rounded a corner, she came across her daughters.

Akane was holding an icepack to her head, crying into Nabiki's shoulder. Kaori folded her arms and cleared her throat, attracting the attention of the two girls.

"Mama... I'm sorry... I almost beat him but he just was too good..."

"What do you mean?" Kaori said, dropping down to her knees and sitting in a _seiza_ position before her two daughters.

"The _Dojo Destroyer_ , Ma," Nabiki sighed, shaking her head. "Apparently he's some big-shot guy who goes across Japan destroying Dojos and taking their signs as pieces of his victory. He came here to challenge our Dojo for our sign, and... he didn't seem to think that no was any sort of choice,"

"I was very close to beating him, he... just got the best of me," Akane murmured, rubbing her legs for comfort.

"I'm sure you did just fine, baby," Kaori said in an attempt to sooth her daughter.

"There's a rematch in three days," Nabiki said, sighing. "He always gives the Dojo one chance to reclaim their sign. Frankly, I want to do more than just reclaim our sign-I want to make the bastard pay for damaging our property."

Kaori looked around. The house itself was still in okay shape, but it was clear there had been some combat. Pieces of the ornamental decorations were askew or damaged, and there were minor structural damages. She idly hoped it wasn't anything serious. Sighing and drawing herself back up to full height, she looked at her two daughters.

"I, by and large, have never taken martial arts so seriously as to do something this dangerous and criminally negligent. However, I shall see to it that justice is properly dispensed. That man does not understand the _hell_ he will be walking in to when he returns. In the mean time, I guess I'll call Oozora and have him send over contractors to get estimates," She said, rising to her feet again.

Walking over the phone, she placed a call straight through to her _oyabun_ friend. After a brief conversation, she placed the phone back on the cradle and looked at her two youngest daughters.

"How about we order out? Where's Kasumi?"

"Kasumi said she was staying at a friend's house in Harajuku for a couple days, um, so it's just us," Akane said quietly.

"Alas, we shall simply have to do without dear Kasumi." Kaori said, shrugging her shoulders. Sitting down at the table, she looked at her daughters quietly.

"The _Dojo Destroyer_ ," she let out a snort of disgust. "Any martial artist worth their salt understands the most basic tenements of discipline. It sounds like this weak pile of man-flesh has never understood such concepts. It is as if all these lunatics joined hands with the Grandmaster to learn nothing of what they were practicing. Absolutely _disgraceful_."

"Do you think that Nodoka had anything to do with this?" Akane asked, gently moving the ice pack away from her head. "It seems like something a woman of... ill-repute would do to eliminate what she sees as bad people."

"No, she wouldn't be nearly as non-violent. He didn't try to kill you or anything like that, thank whatever divine forces exist- she's more the type to hire armed thugs to kidnap people. Though she is very aware of the people I know and how... unfortunate of a time she would have if any harm were to befall myself or my family," Kaori said, gently folding her arms in annoyance.

"No, this is simply just one random person who has way too much time on their hands," she declared with a nod.

"Like the Kunos then," Akane muttered under her breath.

"Most likely," Kaori said, rising to her feet and making her way to the telephone. As she dug through the pile of papers in the drawer of the small end-table, there was the sound of a bicycle dinging twice, before a bright purple bicycle bounced and landed in their yard. Shampoo was on it, a large metal box in her hand.

"Shampoo has arrived, bringing food for Tendou family!" Shampoo proclaimed heroically, grinning ear to ear.

"How the hell did you know we were going to order out?" Nabiki asked, her voice full of disbelief.

"... You were?" Shampoo blinked in surprise, before giggling. "No, Shampoo come at Grandmother's behest. We buy out local Chinese restaurant, create our own. Call it Nekohanten. Here, take this," She said, whipping something towards Kaori.

Kaori snatched it out of the air and glanced at it. It was a Chinese food menu.

"Call any-time, Grandmother take order, I deliver. We promise delivery in thirty minutes or less, or your food is free."

"Shampoo, it says here that you deliver as far as Kyoto."

"Thirty minutes or less, or food is free," Shampoo repeated, her mischievous grin not breaking or faltering.

"Alrighty then," Kaori murmured, unsure how to respond.

"Ah, what happen to fancy house and dojo? Looks like bomb went off here!" Shampoo exclaimed, glancing around.

"Someone named the Dojo Destroyer showed up, demanding a fight against the proprietor of the Dojo for the rights to our sign. I took him on, and lost," Akane murmured.

"How old Dojo Destroyer?" Shampoo asked.

"Middle-aged, thereabouts," Nabiki said, shrugging. "I'd wager early thirties or so."

"Thirty year old man fight against sixteen year old girl? What kind of moron do such a stupid and classless thing? I have half of a mind to have Great-Grandmother track this coward down and punish him."

"That will be unnecessary, but I do appreciate the sentiment, Shampoo. To be honest, as matriarch of the Tendou household, I need to do this- even if I thought I was done with all these wacky martial arts forms," Kaori said with a dramatic sigh.

"Shampoo and Great-Grandmother help you, whatever you need. I promise, Miss Kaori. Need partner for training, sparring? I be here very quick."

"Thank you, my child. And thank you again for the food. We appreciate it," Kaori said, smiling.

"No problem! Shampoo have to go now! More orders to deliver! Bye!" The Chinese girl exclaimed with a bright grin, ringing her bicycle bell twice and bouncing up over the broken perimeter wall.

...

The misty autumn morning clung to everything, enveloping the Japanese capital in a thick haze. Kaori had bundled up in a coat to deal with the dipping temperatures. The last thing her children needed was her contracting influenza or pneumonia because she decided to be stubborn and go out without a coat.

The cemetery where Mariko Tendou was interred was a small one- but one that had hosted the Tendou family for generations. She briefly passed by her father's grave and eyed it carefully, as if expecting the old man to erupt from his dirt nap to chastise her once more for her femininity.

She stopped before her mother's grave and gave a deep, reverent bow.

"I apologize, Mother," Kaori began, "I would have brought you something today, but I need to speak to Mariko in confidence. Please forgive me."

The deafening silence lingered for a brief moment before Kaori moved on to her wife's grave. She stood, staring at it for a time.

"Mariko, I miss you every day," Kaori began, her voice dry with anxiousness. "I wish you could see how beautiful our children have become. You'd be so proud of Akane, every day she fights to be what she wants to be. Nabiki and Kasumi are both doing better than the last time we spoke, my love... and as well, I have news to share," She said, her voice dropping low.

"Our darling flower has come home, after a long journey... and she's just as beautiful as they day she left our lives the first time," Kaori blinked a few tears back and said, "I can only hope that you bless our love, and remember that you will always be in my heart. But I call upon you for more than just informing you of Yumiko's return."

Kaori took in a deep breath and sighed.

"Our family is under siege. Between a man who defiled our doorstep, challenged our family honour, and defeated our daughter in physical combat," She took another deep breath. "And a woman who is so blinded by hate she is willing to kill her husband and child, both of whom are struggling with all their might to understand who they are, and what all that means. I come here to ask you to give me the strength I need to defend our family with every fiber of my soul," Kaori concluded, bowing her head again.

Sniffing back more tears, Kaori straightened herself up, and placed the flowers cradled in her arms on her wife's grave, and bowed again.

"I shall return, my dear," Kaori proclaimed quietly. Turning on her heel, she walked down the small path back to the entrance of the graveyard, fading back into the fuzzy mist.

...

"With a lack of needless distraction, this shouldn't be too much of a problem," Kaori said to Akane as she balanced herself on one of the poles she had erected in the dojo. Leaning forward, she flipped off the pole onto another one, landing with her palm completely flat against the shaft.

"The benefit to me, and a detriment to him-you know his fighting style. He can't really bring any surprises if his entire method of attack is laid bare."

"Well, he tends to use the signs of the Dojos he's defeated, basically trying to overwhelm you with mass tactics."

"That's all? Hm," Kaori tapped her finger to her chin. "Well, either way-I'm not going to sit here and gloat that this will be easy, for all I know he could be the hardest adversary I've met in years... in fact, he probably will be since I haven't exactly made it my life's business getting into honour duels since the Grandmaster was defeated."

"Are you sure you'll be able to do this?" Akane asked, peering at her mother.

"Do I have much of a choice?" Kaori asked, shrugging. "I can't call Yumiko and Ranma and ask them to come back immediately to help me win in a fight. That's not what we do in this school of martial arts. The old man may be gone, but I've got a few tricks of his up my sleeves that nobody, not even you, have seen yet. Maybe Yumiko has, but I doubt she remembers them."

After finishing their practice for the day, Kaori cleared away the poles from the dojo, returning them to the small shed on the edge of the property.

The following morning, she was back in the dojo again, awaiting her mark. When he arrived, she took in her opponent. A large, hulking man with sallow skin and sharp features. Kaori quickly appraised his arms and legs, he had bulk and power, but she was unsure if he would have the best range.

Slinging his bag of signs over his back, he faced Kaori.

The referee for the match was the youngest Oozora child, Hibari. The blonde-haired girl peered at both fighters and cleared her throat.

"This will be a standard match pursuant to an challenge issued by the _Dojo Destroyer_ and a rematch challenge issued by Akane Tendō. The terms are that if Kaori Tendō is declared the victor, the Dojo Destroyer must relinquish possession of the Tendō Dojo sign-should Kaori Tendō lose, the sign will remain in permanent possession by the Dojo Destroyer until such a time that she does defeat him. Is this understood?"

Both fighters gave a brief nod.

"Standard rules of engagement apply, when your opponent is unable to continue fighting, the fight will be over."

The two figures bowed to each other.

"Begin!"

There was initially no action, as the two sized each other up. Kaori wasn't sure what the Destroyer was thinking or contemplating, but his stare was fixated directly on her. He launched his first attack, a wide swipe with his hand, which she quickly evaded by ducking out of the way.

Immediately she could tell that he was testing the waters to see what his enemy was capable of. It was to no surprise that he followed up with something she barely dodged-one of his wooden signs. It lodged itself in the wall of the dojo with a loud _THUNK._

Better the wall than her head, she reasoned.

Moving quickly, she moved in for a couple strikes and only landed one of many, being solidly rebuffed. Exploiting a hole in her defenses, she received a very strong sock to the gut, forcing her back. Regaining her breath, she dodged a few more wooden signs while thinking of a strategy.

She wouldn't be able to strike directly-he was too strong and too much of a brick for her to do any significant damage. At a range, he would be able to sling wooden signs at her until he eventually exhausted his supply, but if she got hit once, it would be all over.

Reluctantly, she knew what she had to do.

After dodging another wooden sign, she moved her footing into a specific formation, and tapped into her ki-perhaps the only useful thing the Old Man had ever taught her and Yumiko. While she wasn't exactly a master of ki manipulation, she was able to create a ball of energy which she whipped at her enemy with as much ferocity as she could muster.

The ball plowed into the Dojo Destroyer like a pick-up truck, sending the mountain of a man flying into the wall. She followed up by taking off at a full sprint, leaping into the air, and delivering what appeared to be the most American thing ever- a flying knee drop. Plowing into the back of her enemy, he let out a rattled breath and didn't move.

Hibari came over and checked his pulse.

"He's alive- Kaori Tendō wins by technical knockout."

Kaori picked up the bag of signs that were left, and pulled hers out. Gently running her fingers on the calligraphy of her late wife, she handed the sign to Akane.

"Please put this sign back where it belongs."

She looked in the bag again, and pulled out another sign, this one clearly marked as " _Kantō Yakuza; Oozora Clan_ ". Looking at Hibari, she showed her the sign.

"So that's where that went! Heh," Hibari laughed, taking the sign. "Some guy recently broke in and beat up a bunch of our bodyguards, poor Seiji was pissed. Not as much as Daddy, but after getting his inoculation, Daddy calmed down-thanks, Auntie Kaori!"

She grinned and gently rubbed her hand through Hibari's hair.

Hibari said, "I can take the rest of these signs and find their rightful owners, if you want? We've got the manpower network for that."

"I'd like that, actually," Kaori smiled, handing the large bag to the small blonde. "Akane and I will take care of bozo over here," Kaori gestured to the unconscious Destroyer.

With a little manpower effort, Kaori and Akane lifted the man up, and tossed him into a nearby dumpster down the street.

Returning back to their home, Hibari was snapping pictures with her film camera of the damage from both Destroyer fights.

"I'll have Daddy send those contractors over tomorrow to start working. This will help them understand exactly what they're getting into." She said, smiling at Kaori.

"Tell your father how much I appreciate this," Kaori said, rubbing the bridge of her nose.

"Of course. Daddy would _never_ let his favorite councilwoman need anything," Hibari said with a nod.

After the blonde had left, the family had gone back to their livelihoods. Kasumi, Ukyo and Konatsu were still out of town, so Kaori made a quick family dinner. As they were eating, Akane piped up with a question.

"Hey Mom, how come you're friends with that one Yakuza oyabun?"

Kaori blinked and shrugged. "One thing you'll come to understand, my daughter, is that Japanese politics is a very murky and corrupt business. It's all about the seedy friends you have... and in the case of Oozora, it's complex. Your great-grandfather was a very prudent businessman, and was very close friends with Ibari's father- as a result, when I started out in the world of politics, I inherited much of my great-grandfather's ties. The only thing that keeps me from being part of the House of Representatives or even in the Cabinet is because... of who I am, basically."

Kaori shrugged.

"Besides, I vastly prefer the live I live. I work whatever hours I choose, I help my neighborhood, I get to see my children, and I have a loving girlfriend. I really wouldn't change much of anything at this point," Kaori said with a small laugh. "Particularly now that I've reunited with the one other woman who filled me with happiness and joy. That's always something to strive for girls. Sometimes you'll find just one person who does it, and sometimes there's more. Your mother was... a radiant sun, and I loved her so much, but Yumiko might as well be a glistening full moon."

She took a bite of her food and sighed.

"We were never meant to not be a trio of lovers. There were just... circumstances that kept us apart. I hope you understand that-Yumiko will never replace your mother, she's just the third part of that puzzle."

"We understand. We know you're happy, and trust me, that's what all of us want," Nabiki said quietly, gently rubbing her mother's shoulder. "If anything, you're doing more to help those two than vice versa."

"I should say," Kaori said, snorting. "Nodoka is a nut job."


	13. Chapter 13

Ranma and Yumiko returned home in the early dawn. As the morning sun lazily lay nestled in the horizon, their train arrived from Osaka. They were met at the train station by Kaori and Akane, both of whom were very pleased at the target of their affections had come home at last.

"How did you both enjoy Osaka?" Kaori asked as they departed the train station.

"Oh, it was wonderful seeing the family again. It was actually quite surreal," Yumiko said with a lazy smile. A disarmed, and warm smile- not one that was a front, or one that seemed to hide something else.

"Yeah, it was fun. I met a bunch of my cousins, a few of them were my age. We had a great time together," Ranma said with a smile. They were dressed more masculine as a change of pace, but Akane could see their nails were still painted.

As they made their way back to the Tendo Dojo, Kaori shook her head.

"You two missed a heck of an event," Kaori said, launching into her explanation of the Dojo Destroyer and his initial defeat of Akane and his subsequent defeat by Kaori.

"You harnessed one of the Master's finishing moves? I'm surprised," Yumiko said, nodding. "But excellent work, dear. Very resourceful. From what it seems, he was certainly a mountain of a man to deal with."

"Yes, brute strength was not going to work, I couldn't land a hit on him until I hit him with that energy burst. Fortunately some time today, Oozora is sending over contractors to help fix the house from the damages he caused. Kasumi, Ukyo and Konatsu are out of town for a couple more days, so it'll be the four of us and Nabiki."

"Is she still sleeping?" Ranma asked, smirking.

"Yeah, you know how she is," Akane said, rolling her eyes.

She took on a slurred, gravelly, tired voice. "Don't talk to me until I've had my coffee..."

Ranma and Kaori started giggling before Kaori wagged her finger. "Don't make fun of your sister like that, Akane!"

"Why, they know it's true!"

"Okay, fair enough-but don't make fun of her around other people."

"Alright, alright, I was just teasing..." Akane pouted, folding her arms across her chest.

"I know, I'm just saying. You don't want to invoke her wrath."

"Ooh," Akane said, blinking. "Good point."

As they arrived back home, the two Saotomes found themselves being yanked with full force for some private one-on-one with their respective love interests.

In the case of the older pair, as soon as their bedroom door had shut behind them, Kaori was once again all over her girlfriend. Yumiko held her girlfriend at arm's length, looking her over.

"It's only been a few days, honey- did you miss me that much?" Yumiko asked, mirth leaking into her voice.

"It was like the sun was never going to rise again," Kaori said, in an attempt to be poetic.

Yumiko simply giggled. "So dramatic," She said as she dropped her pants to the floor, and kicked them into the laundry basket.

"Ooh!" Kaori marveled at her girlfriend's choice of underwear. "Lace!"

"What, did you think I wasn't expecting you to be hornier than a schoolgirl?" Yumiko asked, cocking her hip confidently, playing with the hem of her panties with her thumbs.

Kaori had to admit- a few days with her family, healing some of those emotional wounds, and it was like Yumiko was a new woman, comfortable in her skin and _happy_ to be alive. That alone was enough to make her aroused, let alone the sweet body that came with the beautiful personality.

"You know me so well, Saotome," Kaori crooned, gently running her hand along her girlfriend's jaw, her hand moving down to her girlfriend's crotch. Kaori slipped her hand into Yumiko's panties, and began to gently stroke her clitoris.

"Now," Kaori said, "shall we play, Miss Saotome?"

A mischievous grin spread across Yumiko's face.

"Of course, Miss Tendo." Yumiko said, before she immediately went for the neck, kissing and biting it, soliciting a sharp gasp from Kaori. It wasn't long before the two were a naked pile of flesh wrestling around on the bed.

...

While Kaori and Yumiko were reacquainting after their brief separation, Akane and Ranma were sitting quietly in their bedroom, sitting across from each other on the bed.

"So," Akane began, looking nervously around the room for something to fixate on. "Your trip was good?"

"Yeah," Ranma nodded, looking down at their lap. "I had fun. My cousins are pretty wild, we had a sleepover and they showed me some really cool hideaways in Osaka they go to hang out when they're not in class."

"Great!" Akane said, rubbing the back of her neck. She swallowed.

"I missed you," Akane said, her voice dropping down to a whisper. "I missed you so much..."

"I was only gone a few days, though," Ranma said, smiling at Akane.

"I know, but it's really hard to sleep without your presence! I have no idea when that dependency formed but it's there!" Akane said, flopping over onto her bed.

Ranma grabbed her arm and pulled her back up, laughing.

"Well, I'm back now ain't I?"

"Yeah," Akane said, scratching the back of her head. Silence lingered for a few moments before Ranma leaned in and kissed Akane on the lips quietly. Their inexperience showed, as they clumsily made out for a few minutes before they separated, their faces both at a full blush.

"That was my first kiss," Akane said meekly. "Not many girls or guys wanna kiss me... you know... because of who I am, and I wasn't going to let Kuno be the first one!"

"You're my first kiss as well," Ranma said, smiling. "I didn't exactly chase girls as a kid."

"I liked kissing you a lot," Akane said, touching her fingers to lips. She started giggling.

The giggles seemed infectious, as Ranma started giggling loudly as well, before they stopped and stared at each other again, and began kissing again. It seemed to go on like this for a bit, before they were finally able to pull each other apart.

"I.. uh," Akane began to speak but stopped. She squeezed her eyes shut and said, "Iloveyouranma"

"What?" Ranma asked, blinking.

"I love you, Ranma. You're such a sweet person and... I really like you. Love you."

A genuine grin began to spread across Ranma's face and the young martial artist seemed pleased to no end.

"I love you too, Akane! Wow. I honestly never hear the l-word. Even Ma has only been using it recently. Used to not do that back when she and I were on the road. I guess emotional scarring and detachment can be a serious thing," They said, gently pressing their forehead against Akane's forehead.

"But, Akane, you'll never hafta worry about me stepping out on you. You're the cutest girl I've ever met in my life,"

"Oh, Ranma!" Akane exclaimed, blinking back tears. She embraced the dark-haired martial artist. Ranma and Akane decided to lay together and catch up on some lost sleep from the train ride and the early morning wakeup call. When Kaori came upstairs later to see if they were hungry, she found them curled up together, Ranma's arm protectively draped around Akane.

She closed the door quietly, smiling to herself the entire time she walked back to her bedroom. Slipping through the door, she yanked her bathrobe off, tossing it onto the chair of her desk. Yumiko was still naked, with only the thin sheet covering her curves. She was talking on the phone with someone, talking animatedly before she finally concluded and hung up.

"Kids not hungry?" Yumiko asked, and Kaori shook her head.

"They're sleeping. It's very cute, they're wrapped in each other's arms," Kaori said, smiling. "It's absolutely adorable."

Yumiko smiled. "Well, that's good," She said, stretching. "I actually found one of those business cards I was given at the bar and gave her a call," She tossed the business card to Kaori who caught it.

"Yoshiro Mariko, representative of... a modeling agency? You want to become a model?"

"Maybe," Yumiko said, smiling. "I wanna at least give it a try. My cousins and aunts and uncles helped me feel a lot more confident about myself, and... well, I'm not sure. It may not be something I really want to do the rest of my life-but it's definitely something I wanna take a crack at. I actually like what I do now, but hey, diversity is always fun."

"I suppose so. Just be careful, I guess." Kaori said, placing the business card on the night-stand.

"Naturally, dear," Yumiko said with a sly smile. "Now come here, I want to cuddle a bit more with you, baby girl."

"I can feel the bruises and irritation. No more biting and sucking until I'm not covered in them anymore," Kaori said with a stern voice. Her face betrayed her sternness as it was grinning ear to ear.

"Oh," Yumiko said, with fake outrage. "I thought you _liked_ it when I sucked on your tits."

Kaori crossed her arms across her chest and said, "I don't even know why you want to suck on them, yours are much bigger than mine."

"Yeah, but yours are earned through hard-work and dedication to becoming your true self. Mine was just an accident."

"Sexiest fuckin' accident I've ever seen in my life," Kaori said with a snort, dropping into bed next to her girlfriend.

"We'll get you some Nyannichuan if it's the last thing I do, okay, babe? But I'm not entirely sure I want you to get Nyannichuan. I... kinda like your little appendage," Yumiko said, gently taking Kaori's dick in her hand. It twitched slightly, and Kaori blushed.

"I mean, don't get me wrong, baby, I totally acknowledge that you're within your right to have it taken off if you want, I'm just saying it's a pretty nice thing. I know I really like it when you come in me." While talking, Yumiko had begun to gently rub Kaori's dick, causing the woman in question to blush deep and hard.

"Oh my god, _Yumiko_ ," Kaori said, covering her face with her hands.

"What? It's true! It's a different texture than how it was back in the day. It's a good texture, though. I vastly prefer it."

Kaori let out a quiet moan of "fuck" as a large wet stain began to appear on their sheets.

"Did ya like that, my love?" Yumiko whispered into Kaori's ear.

"God, I love you so much," Kaori responded, grinning.

"Prove it, bitch." Yumiko said with a sly face. She, before Kaori could react, reached over and tweaked one of Kaori's sore nipples, that were already swollen and irritated from her ministrations earlier.

"Ow! You bitch! Come here!" Kaori said, flipping on top of Yumiko, who was squealing with glee and delight.

...

"Hello, I'm home!" A female voice rang out in the entryway of the Tendou home.

"Kasumi!" Kaori's voice was heard from her bedroom. After some rustling, Kaori emerged from the bedroom wrapped in a bathrobe, but she stopped dead as soon as she saw her eldest.

Gone was the matronly _yamato nadeshiko_ appearance. First, Kasumi had cut her hair super short, and dyed it from the usual chestnut brown to a shade of black with purple undertones. But that was just the _first_ thing Kaori noticed. As she took in her daughter's appearance, it got more intense from there. Leather choker, black jacket, black shirt, denim jeans, boots with spikes on them.

In a matter of a few days, Kasumi had gone from housemaker to _housewrecker_.

Kaori whistled in shock.

"By the Kami, Kasumi! What's all this?" She asked.

"I decided I wanted to change my style a bit. Got tired of being emulated and upheld as a symbol of tradition. That's just not me, never has been, and I don't know why the hell I let that _be_ me. Now that you've got Yumiko around and I don't need to be the housewife, I think it's time I establish a little independence." Kasumi said, fiddling with her fingerless gloves.

Kaori blinked as realization set in. "Oh, shit. I'm so sorry, Kasumi. I didn't realize Akane and I were... trying to emulate you. Fuck, you know what? You're a grown woman, you have fun with yourself. Dress as you please. As your mother, I'm behind you one-hundred percent."

Kasumi now had her turn to blink in shock. "Damnit, you're not supposed to be cool with it! I might tone it down a bit from here, but I do like this aesthetic."

"Punk is badass, my child." Kaori said, gesturing with the horns.

Kasumi began to laugh and Kaori soon joined her. Curious about the loud laughing, Yumiko came out of the bedroom wearing her bathrobe and got her own chance to take in Kasumi's appearance.

"Oh, y'know what. Next time Nodoka comes over looking for me, we've gotta let her take in a good look at you. It'd make her blow her top. Now, what other degeneracy are you into, Kasumi?" Yumiko asked, wiggling her eyebrows.

Kasumi smirked. "Let's just say I'm not exclusive, and I'm not picky," The 19 year old said with a wink and a cheeky grin.

Her mother and her mother's girlfriend gave her a thumbs up.

"No shame in that," Yumiko said, nodding.

"I agree. We definitely had our share of fun at your age with that mindset. Just practice safe sex, alright? And only... hmm, be non-exclusive with people you trust. Also if you're ever in a compromising position and you need our help, call us." Kaori said, patting her daughter's shoulder.

As Kasumi ran upstairs to put her bags away, Yumiko whistled to herself.

"We're the gayest family in Japan, aren't we? I'm surprised there's not legions of right-wingers at our door trying to murder us."

"Most people in Nerima mind their own business. But, I suppose Kasumi's right. We all need to stop emulating tradition and arch-femininity, and be ourselves." Kaori said with a nod.

"I find the social mores of you youngsters is always in flux," A dry voice said from nearby.

Kaori and Yumiko whipped around to see Elder Cologne of the Joketsuzoku balancing tightly on their wall.

"Greetings," The Elder said with a sly smile.

"Who..." Kaori began to ask, turning to see Yumiko's face ashen and full of uncertainty.

"I am Elder Cologne of the Joketsuzoku, also Shampoo's Great-Grandmother," She hopped off the wall and bounced on her walking stick up to Kaori. "I'm guessing you're Kaori Tendou. My Great-Granddaughter has spoken very highly of you."

"Um... thank you, Elder." Kaori said quietly.

The old woman turned to Yumiko. "And you, criminal outsider. I trust you have been behaving yourself."

Yumiko didn't respond, simply kept a tight lip.

"Hmm," The Elder said, shrugging. "Well, no matter. I come bearing a gift."

She produced a large pill container, on a small chain.

"The Phoenix Pill. The curse to the Cat's Tongue that I placed on you, outsider. This is your ticket back to manhood." The old woman's voice seemed almost mocking, but she was thrown-off slightly when Yumiko started laughing.

"Pass, Elder." Yumiko said, shrugging her shoulders. "I don't want to be a man again, truth be told. I'm happy this way," She said, wrapping her arm around Kaori's waist.

The Elder blinked again in shock, and folded her arms. This was one of the first times she'd seen someone who had been punished for criminality in the tribe take to their misfortune with such gusto. Of course, she'd had a slight inkling when she'd pried some details from the outsiders... but to have it so plainly confirmed.

A new plethora of ideas came to Elder Cologne, and she gave a slight smile.

"You'd be able to take hot baths again, even if you want to keep your curse," She offered.

Yumiko looked at her and raised an eyebrow.

"What do you want for it?"

"I want you to try to take it from me." Cologne said with a smug grin.

Yumiko was quick, but Cologne was quicker. Cologne dodged and lead Yumiko on a wild-goose chase. Eventually, Cologne tired of the charade and hopped back up onto the wall. Turning to face Yumiko, she smiled.

"I am in need of waitresses for the late shift. You and the other outsider, report to the Nekohanten at 7pm tomorrow, and we shall begin to see if you can prove yourself worthy."

With a shrill cackle, the Elder disappeared from sight, the laugh fading into the distance.

"Did I just get another job?" Yumiko asked with a wheeze.

"I think so, dear. I think so," Kaori said, shaking her head. "You'll just have to be more austere with your schedule. What are your class hours?"

"I'm usually done by 2 or so," Yumiko said, scratching her head. "And I'm kinda used to not sleeping much. Ranma and I used to do our hikes on a couple hours of sleep."

"Well, then there you go," Kaori said, smiling.

"I didn't really want Ranma to have to take on responsibility, I'll let them decide if they want to participate in this or not," Yumiko said, folding her arms across her chest. "I'm not going to drag them into this."

...

The following evening came, and Ranma required next to no convincing to hop on-board with the idea. The eager martial artist was still very much interested in learning new forms and moves, and agreed to join their mother at the Nekohanten. Arriving at the small restaurant, they made their way inside, where Cologne and Shampoo were waiting.

"Ah, right on time, my new part-timers," Cologne said, tossing a couple aprons to them.

"First, Elder, I want to state that Ranma is doing this voluntarily. I request you give Ranma some leeway in terms of schooling. I don't want my child's grades to suffer to learn a new martial arts style."

The Elder nodded. "Of course, we always want to ensure our heirs are properly trained and educated. Should your child require any tutoring, Shampoo would be more than happy to help."

Shampoo nodded and gave a smile. "Shampoo have Master's Degree in Mechanical Engineering, from University of Shanghai!"

Yumiko blinked in surprise.

"Shampoo, how... old are you?" Yumiko asked, wheezing slightly.

"Shampoo is twenty-one." The indigo-haired warrior replied, smiling. "Shampoo remember when she 16 like Ranma. Party too much, but work very hard. All pay off."

"Shit," Yumiko said, wheezing. "Well, alright then. Ready, Ranma?"

"Damn straight, Ma."

"Wonderful, that's the right attitude. Now, let us begin," Cologne said with a smirk.

...

Kaori dropped by later that night to check in on her girlfriend and Ranma. Entering the busy restaurant (surprisingly, the Nekohanten was incredibly popular with folks who worked late hours, as the cheap prices and hot food was a one-hit KO combination), she saw Ranma and Yumiko both animated with speed, dashing around carrying a very unlikely number of bowls of ramen. Yumiko's face was covered in bandages, but Ranma looked okay, other than their hair being a bit askew.

Sitting down at a table, Kaori patiently waited before Shampoo appeared before her.

"Ah! Miss Kaori! Welcome to Nekohanten! What would you like?"

"Well, I'd like whatever the Elder recommends, but I also want to know how my girlfriend and her child are doing. Not beating them up too much?"

"They be okay. Elder will make sure they're in one piece when we close. This training useful. Make them much faster, Elder make me do it back in village, except not involve ramen bowls, it involve hunting parties and sleep darts."

"That sounds horrifying," Kaori said, but Shampoo simply shrugged.

"Not as bad as you think. One thing Joketsuzoku always believe in is that when training, make right what not right at end of day. Training useless if you too broken to make good use of skill," Shampoo said, smiling. She turned on heel and went to the kitchen to deliver the slip. After a few minutes, Cologne's raspy voice could be heard.

"Orders up!"

Ranma dashed over to the kitchen window, and Kaori could see Ranma balancing upwards of 8 bowls of ramen on their arms, shoulders and head. They quickly made their way around the restaurant, dishing out the various ramen bowls, before coming finally to Kaori.

"Here you are!" Ranma said, an unusual note of cheer in their voice. The redhead slid a bowl of ramen in front of Kaori and dispensed various utensils. She disappeared again and returned with some things on the side, and bowed once, before disappearing again.

Kaori finished her ramen and watched Ranma and Yumiko for a few minutes longer before heading back home. She knew she was just being paranoid. _Ranma and Yumiko are strong women, stronger so given what they've put up with over the years... I've just gotta trust 'em._

...

When the doors finally closed, and the restaurant was closed, Yumiko and Ranma collapsed into chairs, wheezing heavily. The amount of sustained energy they exhausted even in a short shift, was brutal enough to exhaust them.

"Working at my restaurant is a rough go of things," Cologne said as she hopped from around her place in the kitchen. "But boy, does it make you feel young. I feel as spry as a 160 year old. Do you see why I'm having you do this, Saotome?"

Yumiko looked at the Elder, and blinked.

"Because you're a sadomasochist?"

She was whacked once on the head with the walking stick.

"No," The Elder said with a _harrumph_. "Speed training is the only way you're going to get this Phoenix Pill, and it will also improve your endurance, stamina and fine motor control skills. Also, there are other reasons I want you both to go through this gauntlet."

"Other reasons?" Ranma asked, rubbing their feet in annoyance.

"Other reasons. Reasons that are a surprise. Now, take your tips and head on home for the day. Ranma, stop by here after class tomorrow and I'll get you in for a shift. Yumiko, stop by tomorrow evening around 7. That way we can get the most out of our new part-time labour," The Elder said with a smile. She snapped her fingers. "Oh, yes! That reminds me, here," She retireved two vials from her pocket, and handed them to the Saotomes.

"Drink it. It's an elixir that will help with pain management, and help heal cuts and bruises."

The two downed the elixirs, and went to leave. As they left, Shampoo looked at her Great-Grandmother.

"What you planning, Great-Grandmother?" She asked, curiosity in her voice.

"Oh, when am I _not_ planning things, dear? You don't get to be 356 years old without making many plans, and many friends. This is something that little ghoul Happousai did not learn, and see where it landed him. But either way," The Elder said, folding her arms behind her back. "I have some ideas on how best to cultivate such rich resources as them. It is not often a teacher finds students so... rich with potential. Wouldn't it be great to have two powerful martial artists as our allies? To help build and secure our people's integrity in a time of sorrows?"

Shampoo had to admit, the logic there was pretty sound.

"Just don't kill them, Great-Grandmother."

"I have no intentions of doing so, child," The Elder responded in a knowing tone.

...

The following afternoon, after classes had let out, Ranma had returned to the Nekohanten for another shift. The Elder seemed pleased to see them back, and asked Ranma if they were feeling okay.

"Yeah, I feel fine, thanks. That elixir worked wonders," Ranma said, smiling with confidence.

"Good! Very good, now, yesterday you were doing a large amount of speed training. Today, we're going to step the difficulty up a bit," The Elder held up ankle weights.

"These are ankle weights. We want to begin training your strength _as well_ as your speed. If you do well enough with this, I have no doubt that you won't be able to learn the same ability that your mother will, eventually, learn." The Elder said, handing the weights over to Ranma.

The weights caught Ranma by surprise. Ranma could lift things in both forms quite well, the last time they'd benched something, it was about 400 kilograms. These were heavier _than that_.

"How... how heavy are these things?" Ranma said, barely able to hold the weights up.

"500 kilograms," Cologne said with a smile.

"You want me to work a shift, dashing around as fast as possible, with 500 kilograms attached to my ankles?" Ranma asked, blinking.

"Yes," The Elder said, her smile not breaking.

"Is this even possible?" Ranma asked again, putting the ankle weights on. Standing up, Ranma found that their movement speed was now drastically less. "Elder, I don't think this will work."

"Have faith. If it doesn't work, we can scale back the size, but I have a feeling you'll do fine once you get used to them."

Ranma bowed once, and went to start their shift. While at first it was difficult managing the tight weaving between the tables while carrying over a dozen bowls of ramen in their arms, it got easier as things went on. Bouncing around like a pinball, they soon forgot they were even wearing the ankle weights. At the end of the shift, they made their way into the kitchen. Cologne surprised them by sweeping her walking stick under them. Ranma only narrowly avoided being tripped up by jumping straight into the air.

When their feet slammed back to the ground, Cologne was grinning.

"See, I told you, child. A little getting used to it, and you'd be good to go. We'll definitely need to get you in touch with your ki reserves. I can just tell by subconscious use, you're doing well enough at it. How would you feel about being able to bench a metric ton? Or more?"

"That sounds incredible."

"Spiritual energy and magic defy the standard conventions of the theories of physics," Cologne said, smirking. "While I am unsure if your mother can handle learning ki, I think you are very much capable of doing so."

She hopped over to her bookcase, and had her back turned to Ranma. Ranma's muscles twitched involuntarily, and in an instant, a book was flung towards them. Ranma caught it and looked at the cover.

"The Basics of Chi," Ranma read the title and looked up at Cologne.

"Even in the realm of physical art and mysticism, you must still read books, as much as that may be a _complete drag_." The Elder said, the same serene and ancient smile resting on her face. Ranma felt that the use of such a modern slang term was... out of place, for a woman of over three centuries.

"Now run along, enjoy the rest of your night. Your mother should be here soon, and she's got her own gauntlet of pain to go through," The Elder said, the mischievous smirk returning once again.

...

The book was incredibly interesting. The first chapter had the author explaining the very nature of _chi_. Chi (or _qi_ , depending on how you write latinized Chinese), was an ancient force of nature that had existed long before recorded history. Chi, as a concept, was not too dissimilar to _the Force_ , which Ranma had seen in that LaserDisc movie, Star Wars.

Maybe the concepts were similar? Ranma reasoned. If chi was a universal life energy that bonded and linked the universe, then maybe things like Force senses could be learned. It was to that end that Ranma decided to test this theory.

Recruiting Akane and Nabiki, they went into the Dojo with a bucket full of tennis balls. Ranma, equipped with a _bokken_ taken from their supply shed, was to try to avoid or block the tennis balls before they hit them.

The kicker was- it had to be done blindfolded.

"I can't believe we're about to do this," Akane said, laughing. "You're trying to be Luke Skywalker."

"Kinda, this isn't going to be _exactly_ like The Force, but it has to work in a similar way, right?"

Nabiki looked at the book Cologne had loaned him and shrugged her shoulders. "Just based on these first topics, I'd say your chances of being right aren't too bad, Saotome. Look at how a little domesticity has sharpened you right up."

"Shuddap, Nabiki," Ranma said, smiling knowingly.

"Alright, here we go," Akane said, picking up a tennis ball. She quietly padded around Ranma in a circle, before letting loose the first tennis ball.

 _THUNK_ "Ow!"

"That didn't work," Akane said dryly.

"I'm still trying to get a feel for this. How did Obi-Wan get Luke to look deep into the Force to block those shots from the little robot?"

"Good question, it was Hollywood magic, Ranma, I can't really explain the inner machinations of the Force!" Akane said, folding her arms.

"Try again," Ranma said, dedication firm in their voice.

Akane once again silently padded around Ranma in a circle, before slinging the tennis ball at them.

Ranma ducked, and the tennis ball sailed harmly past, bouncing off the far wall.

Akane tried again, letting loose another tennis ball, which Ranma blocked with the bokken, sending the ball ricocheting off the ceiling and wall, bouncing to a stop at Nabiki's feet.

"I knew a bit about ki," Ranma began, returning to the resting state. "While never really a topic I learned about in Anything Goes, I remember sitting in on a Kendo lesson once, and the sensei talked a bit about ki energy. I guess this is the kind of stuff he meant."

Another tennis ball was sent sailing at Ranma, landing with another hard _thunk_ on the teenager's head.

"Owie," Ranma sniffed.

...

Shampoo shifted her weight on the tree. She felt bad _spying_ on someone she was increasingly beginning to like as a person, but her Great-Grandmother wanted her to check to see how the Saotome child was dealing with the topic, and how serious they were taking training.

Great-Grandmother would be quite pleased at these updates.

Dropping down from the tree into a roll, she took off back towards the Nekohanten.

Arriving at the backdoor, she knocked on it three times. The door opened, and she entered the small kitchen area.

"My child," The Elder smiled, before dishing out another 8 bowls of ramen to Yumiko, who disappeared back into the front of the restaurant. "How did your recon mission go?"

"Well. Ranma seems to be taking your teachings well. They were practicing ki sense abilities with the two Tendou daughters. It... looked like that one scene from Star Wars. You know, where they're holding the sword, blindfolded, repelling little attacks?"

"Ah, yes, I know that one well," Cologne said with a nod. "Good, very good. I am pleased the child is taking their learning to heart so much."

"Shampoo," Cologne said. "I think tomorrow, we will take the child's practice to another milestone. What do you think?"

"Excellent idea, Great-Grandmother. Maybe we can start teaching Ranma our language as well. I hate talking like an idiot."

"It's a cute look on you, little miss sunshine. Reminds me of when you were a child."

" _Great-Grandmother!_ " Shampoo said, fuming.

"But yes, okay, we can try to work teaching Ranma the _common tongue_ into the instructions. But I don't want to overwhelm the child, that would fly directly in the face of my intent. Hopefully this all pays off."

"It will, I'm sure," Shampoo said. She lifted herself up onto the counter and looked at her Great-Grandmother.

"Why Common? Why not teach her Mandarin?"

"They probably know _some_ Mandarin. In fact, I know they do because they tried to mumble their way through an apology and explanation to me at their interrogation before they realized I spoke Japanese. So instead of refining a pre-existing skill, why not give them a skill that... is hardly taught at all? Common is such an _underused_ language, for what it is."

"Well, I guess so. It is the language of our tribe after all, but it strikes me as... re-embracing old values," Shampoo said.

"Reading the works of President Sun have rotted your faith to the tribe, dear. We're not Chinese, we never _have been_. We simply speak the tongue of the Han in order to simplify things."

"Right," Shampoo said, looking off into space.

"Your mother, always the idealist," Cologne said, wistfully. "Ah, she had such great plans for the day she became Elder. I am sorry that day never came, she was a worthy successor. But I have faith you will do fine as well, when that day comes."

Shampoo rubbed her neck nervously.

"Don't feel nervousness or anxiety about it. I don't plan on dying any time soon, child. But I am over three centuries young, and I have to make those plans because who knows when war or suffering will visit upon us again. Another war against the Musk would... probably be my last one. This is why I am working to strengthen the tribe, and strengthen our alliances with outsiders so that if the Musk or the Maoists come back to exact revenge upon us, we will be able to fight."

The melancholic discussion of the existential crisis that was their tribe's geopolitics was quickly pivoted to other topics, particularly Yumiko and her potential to learn more methods.

...

"Today, I'm going to spare you another round of the gauntlet I call my restaurant," Cologne chuckled. "Instead, today is going to be a test of your ability to use your ki as a way to sense danger. I've got some help keeping the restaurant open while we train."

Cologne set off a number of magical smoke bombs, which eclipsed the small vacant lot behind the Nekohanten in a thick haze. Ranma couldn't see anything past their own face.

"Ranma," Cologne's voice came as a distant echo. "You will be unable to use your standard methods of sense to defend yourself. You and Shampoo will spar using only your ki sense as a guide to the other person. Do you understand?"

"Yes," Ranma said, their voice rattling into an endless echo.

"Good, now begin!" Cologne commanded.

Ranma closed their eyes, and could feel the light swirl of magic around their head, but the fuzzy outline of Shampoo slowly moving around the perimeter of the mist was visible. Ranma focused harder to sharpen Shampoo's outline, to get a feeling for how far away she was.

Alarm spread through Ranma's body as they twisted away from a punch, feeling the _whiff_ of Shampoo's fist as it passed by. Dodging out of the way, Ranma launched their own attack, hitting nothing but air. As they reeled back, Shampoo got a nice knock in on then, sending Ranma tumbling through the dirt.

The mist suddenly dissolved, and Cologne was standing on the nearby fence, frowning.

"You dodged one, that's a start. You need to _focus_ , Ranma."

"It's kinda hard! All that swirly magic, it really makes my head hurt because there's so many things around me."

"It makes your head hurt..." Cologne said, thinking, before dropping down. She walked over to Ranma and looked at them patiently.

"Do you ever have issues keeping your attention on one thing?"

"Y... yeah, sometimes! It makes studying or paying attention in school really hard. I end up doodling on myself sometimes."

"Has your mother ever taken you to a psychologist?"

"No, not as far as I remember."

Cologne frowned and said, "Then you're an incredibly strong person, Ranma- the fact you were even able to use your ki powers at all with... what I can only assume is a form of attention deficit disorder, is impressive. We will have to develop methods to deal with that. In the mean time, here," She procured another pain relief elixir for Ranma to take.

Ranma downed the elixir and Cologne nodded.

"Just do some regular sparring with Shampoo. I'll see if I can consult some tomes to find a method to compensate for your brain's wiring." She bounced off, leaving Shampoo and Ranma alone.

"Shampoo know a couple warriors in tribe who do like you do. Not pay attention, have hard time keeping focus. Not bad thing, just... difficult to teach new things. Elder go check books, maybe something good to help."

The two martial artists went through a light spar, before Cologne returned.

"Okay! The bad news is, there's not much we can do to alleviate your problems. However, I still have confidence you can learn the methodology. Now, let us try this again, but this time, I want you to just rely on your reflex and instinct. Don't try to focus on too much, just listen to the rushing of energy around your head, and listen for changes. It's so random, so chaos... you should be able to compensate for your ADD."

Shampoo leaped up onto the fence with Cologne, and Ranma felt the mist surround them once again. Closing their eyes, they decided to not try to focus in on Shampoo, who was moving around in a fuzzy haze. Instead, Ranma focused on the flowing energy around them, feeling how with every movement, breeze and step, the energy would flow in new directions.

Feeling something change, Ranma ducked, narrowly avoiding a kick from Shampoo. Ranma blinked, waited, and then let loose a punch.

It connected with something solid, and they heard the audible sounds of someone hitting the dirt. The mist lifted.

Shampoo was on her back, clutching her solar plexus.

"Are you okay, Shampoo?" Ranma asked, and Shampoo gave them a silent thumbs up.

"Shampoo just... winded. Will be fine." The indigo-haired warrior replied, staring at the evening sky.

"You'll need to practice energy sensing more, but I think if you focus less on the shapes in the fog, and more on the fog itself, you'll be better off." Cologne said, with an appreciative nod.

"Now," The Elder said, "Once more!"

"Shampoo need minute. Still can't breathe," The warrior replied.


	14. Chapter 14

In her twenty-one years on the planet, there were an increasing number of days where Shampoo felt twice her own age. From a young age, she had been raised with the expectation of one day succeeding Great-Grandmother (who was certainly a bit further up the genetic chain than merely two generations at nearly a half-millennia in age) as one of the sitting members of the Council of Elders, and most likely, High Elder of the Joketsuzoku.

Even she, a warrior of great repute, had to admit that she felt a supreme weight on her shoulders that some days seemed like it would threaten to suffocate her.

She benefitted, to some degree, from the proximity of her people to China's turmoil. Her mother had been born in the dying days of the Qing Dynasty, and had come of age in a time of warlordism and struggle. Her mother had idolized Sun Yat-sen, much to the consternation of the Elders. To learn from President Sun's example of Three Principles was the paramount knowledge her mother parted on her.

Shampoo had never known life under the Kuomintang, as by the time of her birth in 1966, China had been firmly under the boot of Mao Tse-tung and the Communist Party. She recalled very little of her first interactions with the Reds beyond briefly visiting the Han lands as a child. But stories of the Reds invading the Qinghai valley on their way to bloody themselves by conquering Tibet were often told by some of the older warriors in the tribe who had been baptized in the crucible of that skirmish.

When she had gone to the Han lands again in the mid-1980s as a student of engineering, she had been decidedly unimpressed at how dreary the heart of Communist China seemed to be.

But beyond those experiences of her own and those of her mother, Shampoo had learned well from her Grandmother and Great-Grandmother.

Grandmother's weary nature towards Westerners, and her later-in-life hostility towards institutional westernization had taught her to remain weary of things that could threaten the way of her peoples- but Great-Grandmother had been the greatest inspiration of all.

Great-Grandmother's birth was... shrouded in more mystery than Shampoo could have thought or expected. Often she when asked she would give her raspy laugh and say, "Once you pass 300, the years stop mattering, my child."

Even at well over 300, this would put her nearly old enough to remember the fall of the Ming Dynasty and the rise of the Qing- and this alone was the reason why her Great-Grandmother, despite the blustering militarism from some of her younger counterparts in the Council, remained as firmly in the camp of keeping themselves in the good graces of the people, and allowing the slow and steady march of time do the attrition for them, rather then sending good warriors to die for a hopeless cause.

No Elder wanted to deal with what the Emperors and Presidents of China did- even if the tribe was a fraction of it's historical zenith over three millennia ago.

Some days, Shampoo felt like the world was watching her, with great expectation, and anticipation of what was to come.

...

She awoke before dawn, as was customary for her. Morning training never ended, even in this strange, foreign land. Slipping down stairs from the second-floor apartment above the Nekohanten that housed her and Great-Grandmother, she stepped out into the Tokyo morning, bounding up onto rooftops, striding and leaping between them to shake the sleep from her muscles.

Landing in fanciful ways ranging from tucked rolls to one legged, Shampoo came to a stop on a tall apartment building in the very center of Nerima, peering out at the large, clustered metropole around her.

She missed home.

Urban life was not her forte- as nice as it could be to have access to _material goods_ , it was far from what she enjoyed in life. Sometimes the quiet simplicity of the tribe, with the early mornings being dead silent were a blessing. Tokyo, even before dawn, was crawling with activity that could be heard from great distances. It made any sort of meditation or introspection an absolute nightmare to deal with.

Worse so-it reminded her of her time in Shanghai, the years of her life she genuinely wanted nothing to do with, particularly now that she was free of that nightmare.

But, she had to admit, there were certain perks. The tribe's methods of romance and love were so very sanitary; everyone was expected to procreate with someone else to provide the tribe with the warriors who would defend the land in the future against Han incursion- here in Japan, she could genuinely pursue love and romance without the expectation of permanently creating ties which bind, always a beautiful thing to go about doing.

As she returned to the Nekohanten, she entered the door, only to be greeted with the sight of someone she thought she'd long gotten away from.

 _Mousse._

Her long-time friend and rival turned around to face her, and Shampoo felt a sharp urge to bash the girl's skull in. By the measures of things that mattered, Shampoo was more attractive and more intelligent than Mousse- but Mousse was often praised as the 'paragon of feminine virtue' by the religious caste for her "radiant beauty" and "natural charm". Never mind that she was as blind as a bat and boy-crazy- no, Shampoo would never achieve that paragon of virtue because she was "too uncouth, out-spoken, and violent".

Shampoo only wished they lived in war times, then she wouldn't feel so inadequate in the department of womanhood.

"Mousse, what are you doing here?" Shampoo grumbled in Common, pushing past her frenemy and heading towards the kitchen.

"My mother and the Council have agreed to send me here to ensure you are properly punishing the outsider in accordance with the Kiss of Death."

"You know perfectly well that the High Elder has the right to suspend that sentence at her behest, you have no power here!"

"Be that as it may- the Council feels that I need to make reports back about the first members of the tribe to leave the Valley since the Red Flowers War," Mousse said with a smirk. "Particularly you, with your western idealism."

"My 'western ideals' guided China for the better part of a generation and then some, I'll thank you very much."

"And it was defeated by a bunch of mud-slinging degenerates living in the mountains!" Mousse rebutted haughtily. "Why you and your clan adhere to the so-called Three Principles, I do not understand. It is only through our ancient traditions that we may stand firm against the barbarians."

"If you think that is the way for our people to progress, then I truly pity you, Mousse." Shampoo said, shaking her head, and pushing through the kitchen door.

Cologne was sitting in a chair in the kitchen, drinking a pain-relief potion. She looked over at her great-granddaughter entering the kitchen and wryly smiled. "Ah, I see you've already met our newest employee."

"Yes, I have. How do you propose we keep training Ranma and the criminal if we have to deal with Little Miss Perfect out there?"

"It would be trivial for me to ensure none of Mousse's reports make it that far. Besides, she's blind as a bat without her glasses, we can work that to our favour."

"Hmpf," Shampoo said, folding her arms. "And if she ends up trying to kill Ranma?"

"It will be good training to see if Ranma can disarm and put down her opponent."

"You're enjoying our collective suffering, aren't you?"

Cologne let out a rasping, amused laugh in response. "She will be primarily helping out in the kitchen. I have more than enough waitresses, besides... she's been too coddled for too long." She explained.

"Point taken," Shampoo grumbled. "I'm going to go practice my Japanese. Call me when there's something to do."

...

"Yumiko, there's a lot about this that seems... muddled," Dr. Ishikawa looked at her notes carefully. "Let's start over from... after the Typhoon."

"After the Typhoon, well, I don't remember a whole awful lot from that time. I was ten when the hurricane hit, and our home was severely damaged- I distinctly remember finding my mother under a bunch of wooden splinters, and... she wasn't breathing, certainly," She exhaled deeply. "I wandered through town looking for supplies- and that was when I ran into my father. He convinced me that my family had all perished in the storm, and said he was here to take me somewhere safe."

"What about the rest of your aunts, uncles and cousins? Where were they?"

"The troupe was in Kyushu at the time. Strong winds and rough seas had shut down the ferry services running between Shikoku and Kyushu." Yumiko replied, thinking. "He took me to Tokyo, where we lived in this small apartment, one bed that he slept in, barely enough running water, and not much food. I didn't stay with Dad long, maybe a couple months. He didn't like how soft and... effeminate I was."

"Sounds like your father was obsessed with masculinity. It's not uncommon," Dr. Ishikawa contributed, scribbling something down. "What happened then?"

"He abandoned me with... _him_. I think he sold me. Happosai is, or was, the Grandmaster of Anything Goes Martial Arts. He lived in a seedier part of Tokyo. I spent six years living under the aegis of the master, being subjected to... horrors, that I'd really rather forget. Things which would earn quite a heavy prison sentence for him. Either way- it was there I met the Tendos."

"Kaori." Dr. Ishikawa said, and Yumiko nodded. "She was fifteen at the time we first met. After six long years of training and conspiring, Kaori and I got the better of the old man and... well, destroyed him. It was around this time that her father was disgraced and killed himself. Kaori and I moved in with her grandfather, who took us under his wing and started teaching us how to be actual human beings. But the years of abuse by Happosai still burned in our minds."

"And perhaps even, contributed to your psychosis?"

"Maybe." Yumiko said, looking at her hands intently.

"So you lived at the Tendou house?"

"Yes, I did," Yumiko nodded. "Kaori's mother was the sensei of her own Dojo- her family lineage goes back generations with martial arts, and she had built the Tendou Dojo with her own hands, her husband never cared. I was still a minor, but I could feel that Kaori and I had those early blossoming seedlings of romance, but both of us just felt so confused. Two years later, in the summer of 1969 or so, I started attending a local college, and performing onnagata again, though under a different alias than this one. Sadako Yamata."

"You told me a bit about Emiko, whom you met in this time- was she your only sexual partner in this time?"

"Oh, heavens no- there were others. Emiko was just the first one, we dated for about four or five months before we mutually agreed it wasn't going to work out. It was then that I had an encounter with Kaori and her girlfriend."

"Kaori and Mariko, two people I loved very dearly."

"Why did your relationship with them not work?" The therapist asked, glancing at her patient.

"Third wheel, I suppose. I also wasn't exactly brimming with self-confidence. I had started drinking and smoking, and had taken to self-harm a few times. I didn't want to cause Soun and Mariko distress all the time. Besides, it was in the spring of 1970 that I met... her."

"Ah, _her_." The doctor said, sighing. "Tell me a bit about your wife when you first met."

"It was a chance meeting, really. She was a student from Setagaya and we met at a show I had performed in. She was incredibly flirtatious, and she wrapped me around her little finger. She knew just how to stroke my ego and make me submit to her, as the time went on, we got more and more intimate, until we had sex for the first time the following year."

"And she got pregnant."

"Yes," Yumiko said. "She convinced me that she was allergic to condoms, and that we'd just have to try the rhythm method."

"Were you intoxicated at the time?"

"Yes, she knew just how to feed into my alcoholism, she'd bought me this very nice bottle of sake and then got me in bed."

"So she got pregnant, and then what?"

"I felt honor-bound to marry her. She came up with a very sad story that her father would disown her, or something like that, if I didn't do the honorable thing. Of course at the time, I was still ass-deep in my father and Happousai's rantings and ravings on honour, it didn't help that she stroked my ego all the time and insisted I was an honorable, strapping man and things like that."

Yumiko sighed deeply. "Soun and Mariko warned me about her, said she was manipulative and hostile- but I didn't listen, I, infact, got a little terse and upset at them for ruining what I saw as my happiness. I saw less and less of those two. Once Mariko died, Kaori and I had stopped speaking altogether, though by that point I was out of contact anyway."

"So, then, Ranma was born."

"Yes, I suppose it was around this time Nodoka set her plan into motion. She started me on a medicine regimen to deal with what she said was 'chronic illness' that she convinced me I had, and to deal with the alcoholism. I became rapidly addicted to _that_ , and I'm not sure what it was, but it made me... befuddled and I had a hard time questioning her."

"And so the first four years went by... reasonably okay?"

"I guess you could say that. She barely let me around Ranma, saying she was worried Ranma would inherit my... questionable masculine traits, and my strange queerness. I don't remember what she was quoting, but it was some ancient custom that kept young princes away from their fathers and in the hands of their mothers or nursemaids."

"Your queerness isn't strange," Dr. Ishikawa said with a frown.

"I know, but this was the early 70s. It's amazing how much progress we've made in so many years."

"What happened in 1975?" Dr. Ishikawa asked, checking her notes.

"Nodoka convinced me that it was time to start teaching Ranma the art... to keep up the honor of the Saotome clan, and to keep up the honor of Anything Goes, now that the Master was gone."

"And she made you sign a seppuku contract before you left?"

"Yes. She insisted that it would keep me bound to honor and prevent the perversion from seeping back through. She gave me a very large supply of the 'medicine', and enough sake to drown a small nation, and sent me on my way with a child I had barely had contact with for years. I was in a constant alcohol and drug-infused haze, and I did a lot of regrettable things. Attempts I made to... compensate for my growing feelings of uncertainty, or lack of confidence in the plan Nodoka and I had made me even more dishonorable and evil."

The doctor nodded patiently as Yumiko stopped to take a drink of water.

"In my drunken ramblings, I had ended up in possession of a pamphlet, about a place called Jusenkyo. The Mystical Training Grounds of Sorrow. I dragged Ranma there unwillingly, and didn't listen to the Guide when he tried to explain to us why we shouldn't go cavorting around there. I fell into the Spring of Drowned Pious Man, and Ranma into the Spring of Drowned Girl."

Yumiko shook her head. "I did a great injustice to Ranma that day."

"Perhaps, perhaps not. Regret cannot fix wounds, apology and good works can," The doctor replied matter-of-factly. "What happened _after that?_ "

"I panicked, and threw myself into the Spring of Drowned Girl. Fortunately, it had been so soon since I was exposed to the curse magic that it simply... overwrote itself."

"And then you went to this... Amazon village?"

"Yes, yes, we ate their champion's food, got challenged to a duel, got arrested, things like that. I was punished for my dishonor and malevolence by being locked in this form and made to be intolerant of hot water. My skin can't handle it at all."

She nodded carefully. "When did you first start to question your wife's... plan?"

"Hard to say. Most of the most egregious stuff I did came immediately after we left. The Cat Fist technique was... probably three or so months after we left... and the Kuonjis, Ranma was... six or so? After we left for China, everything started to get far clearer to me, and I began to scale back exactly what kind of stuff I was doing to him. Jusenkyo was, perhaps, the last hurrah of my stupidity before my worldview came tumbling down and the curtains got parted or some other inspirational nonsense."

"Indeed," Dr. Ishikawa noted. "Based on the analysis I see here from Doctor Tofuu, it seems you've been under the influence of more than just alcohol and drugs. Clearly your wife has had access to something that's a little more powerful, as your brain shows signs of being _modified_ by something that is beyond the simple scope of regular sciences."

"Magic?" Yumiko questioned, and Dr. Ishikawa shrugged. "It may be worth asking that Chinese Amazon Elder you know if she found anything when you were in their custody. It may reveal just the kind of depraved nonsense your wife was up to."

"One last thing, Yumiko," Dr. Ishikawa said, looking down. "It says here you listed that you had, at one point, suicidal thoughts? When was the last time you had those?"

"A year ago, while we were crossing China looking for training grounds like Jusenkyo. I had briefly considered it because I had run out of her medicine and sake- I suppose she didn't intend for us to be away more than a decade or so. In a hotel in Nanjing I briefly considered blowing my brains out, but didn't... I... don't know what would happen to Ranma if I was gone. I may not be a saint, but... I fear Nodoka."

Dr. Ishikawa nodded. "Have you ever told this to your child?"

"Not everything, I'd rather not dump all this baggage on a sixteen year old's shoulders. I have talked about some of the things that have happened, but not everything. If I could start all over again, I would... and never make such stupid mistakes."

"We all make mistakes, it just so happens you made more serious ones than most. The best thing you can do is be a good mother to your child. Ranma seems to have lacked both a mother _and_ a father for many years, due to neglect and your own unending torment at the hands of an abusive spouse. Perhaps you and Kaori being a unit, and living in a house like that will... help them just as much as it helps you."

"I can only hope," Yumiko said with a sigh. She gently lifted herself off the couch and stood up. She bowed in thankfulness to the therapist. "Thank you for such an enlightened session, Dr. Ishikawa. See you next week?"

"Same time, same place, Yumiko. It was my pleasure."

As Yumiko left, Dr. Ishikawa sighed and sat back in her chair.

"Who ever this Nodoka person is, I hope she rots in a jail cell."

...

"Flight 101 from Honolulu to Tokyo is now disembarking at Gate 12," the female voice on the intercom intoned. The numberless Japanese tourists on the return from their holiday and a few Hawaiian and American tourists coming to visit Japan began to pour through the gate. Perhaps the strangest man in the set was a tanned Japanese man wearing a Hawaiian shirt and lei, his hair done up in a very strange caricature of native culture, and wearing a bizarre pair of red-framed sunglasses.

Everyone near him seemed a little perturbed.

The man grinned confidently and spotted a familiar face near the gate.

"Tatewaki!"

The pale, dark-haired samurai-wannabe blinked in surprise. "Father, is that you?!"

"Da very same, bruddah! You were right, my keikikane, a trip to Hawaii was just what I needed. My brain is very clear now and I'm ready to return to what I do best. I've got some great plans for de school now that I'm back. It will be great!"

"What's with the accent, Father?"

"I met this wonderful woman on the islands, her name was Phyllis. She enlightened me to da way of the Polynesian native. Like a breath of fresh air!"

Tatewaki watched his father push past him to the chauffeur, who seemed even more peturbed and confused. Tatewaki cleared his throat. "I'll catch up, Father. I've got something to do very quickly."

He watched his father's retreating form before walking over to a nearby payphone. Digging in his pockets for a some of the smaller yen coins, he deposited it into the coin slot and picked up the phone. After finagling with it to dial the number of the Tendou family home, the phone rang a few times before a female voice picked up.

"Tendou residence, Ranma speaking."

"Ranma Saotome!" Tatewaki exclaimed.

"Oh. Hello, Tatewaki. What do you need?"

"I wish to speak to Nabiki Tendou immediately, it is a matter most urgent."

"Uh, sure," Ranma said. Tatewaki could hear her calling to another room for Nabiki, before setting the phone down. A few moments passed before the sounds of someone picking the phone up could be heard.

"Kuno-baby? You don't usually call, what's wrong?"

"My... father has returned from his sabbatical to Hawaii, but he's not the same as he was. He's... different, and not in a good way. He's talking in some awful faux-Hawaiian accent and is dressed up like a caricature. He says he's got grand plans for the school."

"Oh that sounds unpleasant," Nabiki murmured. "Okay, thanks for the heads up, I will pass it on to Ranma, Akane and a few others. Did he elaborate at all on what he was planning?"

"No, but I am sure we'll know in due time," Tatewaki said with a sigh.

"Figures. Talk to you later." Nabiki said and the line went dead with a click. Tatewaki put the phone back on the reciever and rubbed his temples. The last thing he needed to add onto his already deranged sister was _a deranged father_. But Tatewaki knew he never had great luck. Begrudingly, he made his way back to the Kuno estate, being forced to hail a taxi once he found that his father had left him at the airport.

Not having him around was almost a pleasant experience.

 _Almost._

...

Cologne observed Yumiko carefully as she weaved her way in between tables full of horny office workers, dodging not only obstacles with weights attached to her ankles, but also the grazing hands of men trying to cop a good feel. It was a promising development, Cologne felt.

Returning to the kitchen in thought, she took in the sight of her _third_ pet project. This one was in a far less proper state. Mousse was frantically flying around the kitchen, covered head to toe in splatters of noodle batter and some of the homemade sauce that Cologne had worked tirelessly to perfect through her life.

She pushed Mousse out of the way and quickly brought order to the kitchen before glaring at her new part-time chef with a critical eye.

"What have I told you about trying to take care of more than you're capable of?"

"I can hurt myself or cause a fire-but Elder, I'm more than capable of handling this! I was the-"

"Top marksman for six years straight, and the scout leader during the last survival trip. Yes, Mousse, I am more than aware of your skills. But you're clearly nowhere near where you need to be to run my kitchen. Should I send you out into the dining room and have _the outsider_ do this? I'm sure she's more than capable of it."

Mousse peered out of the small window at the sexually aggressive customers and shook her head meekly.

"Good, now, I want you to _watch_ what I do, and try not to screw it up."

Cologne went through the process of fulfilling the orders that Yumiko was bringing to her in a very quick and methodical pace. Where Mousse had been ricocheting from one thing to another trying to keep things from overcooking or burning, Cologne's methods almost seemed like a _kata_ , they were smooth as glass.

After the dining hall closed, Cologne stopped, and gestured for Yumiko to close up. Customers soon found themselves being pushed out the door, having been relieved of some of their earnings, and Yumiko returned to the kitchen, sitting on a wooden stool and unlatching the weights from her ankles. The loud _CLANG_ as the weights fell to the ground made Yumiko blink.

"How heavy were these things?"

"Half a ton," Cologne commented, grinning wryly. "Anyway, Mousse, did you see what I was doing?"

"It almost looked like a... _kata_ of sorts. Mystifying," The bespectacled girl commented, tapping her finger to her chin in contemplation.

"Indeed," Cologne said. "Most things can be taken as a kata, particularly if it's one fluid motion. While the things I do at each station are not the same, the motions I take to get from place to place and the timings tend to all sync up with one another-this is an important thing to understand."

She made a gesture to Mousse, which the girl took as being dismissed, and she rapidly moved upstairs. Cologne glanced at Yumiko and then nodded.

"You did well today, outsider," Cologne said, before pulling up a chair and sitting down across from her. "There is hope for you yet. Your child, I have equipped them with the means to start learning how to channel their qi. In fact, I think what may generate some trust between you two can be given from me. I am going to teach you an ancient Amazon martial artist technique-and I will expect you to teach Ranma."

"Understood," Yumiko said with a nod.

"Good, now, let's begin." Cologne said with a smile, before procuring a bundle of firewood and a bag of chestnuts.


End file.
